This means you can do overt and unlimited "AOC busting" in Germany, provided you do it in 4-seaters (or smaller) and it is done using pilots who are not employed by the business which fronts it.
I am seriously impressed!
Back to Croatia 
can you please give me the German reference for this, so I can get it translated?
§ 20 LuftVG is the relevant provision. It talks about who needs an AOC. Rough translation:
(1) Legal or natural persons and companies require for
commercial (gewerblich) scenic tours in airplanes which are not used for transportation between two different locations;
commercial transport of persons and goods with balloons
an authorization as an air transport company (AOC). Also requiring an authorization is the non commercial (nicht gewerbsmäßige) transport of passengers, mail and/or freight with airplanes for money; excluded from this are flights with airplanes approved for maximum 4 persons. Phrase 1 Nr 1 and phrase 2 do not apply to "Luftsportgeräte" (air sport devices = microlights) and for dropping parachute jumpers.
The term "gewerblich" is not defined by law but there is consistent legal precedence on what the criteria are. It must be over an extended period of time, with the intention of turning a profit and organized like a business. § 20 LuftVG applies to the one organizing the flights, not necessarily the pilot or aircraft owner. A flying club would therefore tell interested parties to directly contact the pilot (and different ones) so they are not the one organizing it. As boscomantico said, it's a bit gray but being tolerated.
EASA will put an end to this. If you look at all the EASA committees, you will find that Germany is pretty much unrepresented due to lack of interest and qualified personnel. I keep reading that Germany dominates the EU but looking at EASA and what it does, there is very little contribution from Germany. Given that a lot about our air law sucks, we benefit from the fact that our positions are not being represented but the few things that are good also do not find its way. A positive example is SERA -- this has 0% Germany in it but I like the outcome
Far from truth. In Germany, probably the "biggest" GA nation in Europe, there is a concession in it's ANO which allows PPLs, without any further license, in any aircraft up to four seats, to charge for their flights (as much as you want, not only costshare) as long as you don't do it "gewerblich", which, for lack of a better translation, means something like "commercially". What is gewerblich or not is the defined in the law as well. For example, if you don't do it regularly, it is not gewerblich. So, if you only do it occasionally, you can charge, again, as much as you want.
Now I realise this is probably the most accomodating legislation in Europe, and most countries are much much stricter than that, but again, that's how it currently is in Germany. That's also why we have a lot of opposition against the new european legislation which will restrict this.
boscomantico - can you please give me the German reference for this, so I can get it translated?
There's some grey zone for flight schools that can do a kind of "intro flight" but of course we can't do that on regulat basis for tourists without AOC
This is a big revenue source in the UK. Flying schools can offer "trial lessons". In most cases (that I've seen) the passengers are not interested in learning to fly, but it is an important source of income for schools.
During my PPL training, I got my lesson "bumped" a few times when a short notice trial lesson turned up
That German concession is absolutely amazing. Does the "regularity" apply to the pilot or the aircraft? For example, if ten pilots fly the same plane, can they perform ten public transport flights, one after the other? Or could a single pilot do the same but use ten different planes? I bet German AOC holders absolutely hate it.
PPL cost sharing seems to exist everywhere. Here in the UK, without it, a lot of people fly only if they go say three-up and cost share 3 ways, and they would simply stop flying otherwise. The USA has it too but with a very strict "common purpose" rule which makes it almost unusable if one wants to be 100% legal.
I don't think any country in Europe, or indeed the world, allows paying passengers to be carried without an AOC, which means private pilots could never do it.
Far from truth. In Germany, probably the "biggest" GA nation in Europe, there is a concession in it's ANO which allows PPLs, without any further license, in any aircraft up to four seats, to charge for their flights (as much as you want, not only costshare) as long as you don't do it "gewerblich", which, for lack of a better translation, means something like "commercially". What is gewerblich or not is the defined in the law as well. For example, if you don't do it regularly, it is not gewerblich. So, if you only do it occasionally, you can charge, again, as much as you want.
Now I realise this is probably the most accomodating legislation in Europe, and most countries are much much stricter than that, but again, that's how it currently is in Germany. That's also why we have a lot of opposition against the new european legislation which will restrict this.
Back to Croatia, I do realize that even if they had the german legislation this wouldn't allow one to set up a panoramic flight business purely with a PPL and without an AOC, as this business would of course require a certain continuity and also advertisment, but still, it would allow a lot of private pilots to keep their costs down by flying with friends and acquaintances (and receiving at least the flight's cost). This is what keeps many small flying clubs alive in Germany.
Aviation regulations are similar as across the EU, compliant and supervised by EASA. Panoramic flights can be offered if you have AOC. There's some grey zone for flight schools that can do a kind of "intro flight" but of course we can't do that on regulat basis for tourists without AOC. AFAIK, such flights are offered at Brac, Losinj and Medulin (LDPM - grass strip near Pula). Other coastal airports are too busy during summer and don't find such flights interesting for them and have too high landing fees.
I was suprised that there seem to be few if any pleasure/sightseeing flights in Croatia. In fact I don't recall seeing any. It should be an obvious business opportunity because the Adriatic coast there is one of the most scenic bits I have ever seen in Europe. It's always a pleasure to fly down there
I don't think any country in Europe, or indeed the world, allows paying passengers to be carried without an AOC, which means private pilots could never do it.
I thought that the average wealth of the people was increasing (with Croatia shortly joining the EU)
Not wishing to be controversial but do you think joining the EU as it is today is going to make Croatia more wealthy? Those southern countries which joined some years back got loads of money out of it, and of course (due to the implicit assumed backing of Germany which was "always going to keep the EU together at any cost") very cheap € loans which they now struggle to repay. My feeling is that while EU grants paid for a lot of nice roads, etc, the really visible consumer wealth was mostly on borrowed money, funding an economic boom. But it would suprise me if there was much money left in the EU pot nowadays. Also I don't think Croatia is going to make the same mistakes as the others. My overwhelming impression of Croatia is that it is run by smart people.
Poland, like the Czech Rep, had a very long history of aviation, going back to the very beginning of aviation, and when communism ended, they still had that "spirit" and some manufacturing industry.
Emir,
BTW, It's great to have a GA pilot from Croatia around here. You say
GA community in Croatia gets smaller every day
That is sad to hear. I wonder why this is. Yes, of course, flying is becoming ever more expensive and ever more complicated, but on the other hand, I guess that Croatia started off with a rather low baseline number of pilots some years ago. In general, I thought that the average wealth of the people was increasing (with Croatia shortly joining the EU), which is always good for small GA (look at the development of Poland's GA for example). Also, Croatia, with its particular geography, looks ideal for a host of GA applications(taxi flights etc.). And: I am sure that if you do it right, you could sell thousands of panoramic flights to tourists each season in places like Losinj or Zadar. The croatian islands are beautiful and would get many people on their first rides absolutely hooked. But I don't know what the croatian regs are like regarding cost sharing for PPLs or even for selling panoramic flights with a profit...
there will be a provision to fly direct to non-customs airfields such as Hvar or Unije
I don't believe it's going to happen.
BTW Hvar is grass strip and unfortunatelly lately poorly maintained - I'm not sure if this is going to change in future ... Over last few years chrisis has hit many local clubs which used to operate airfields using government subsidies - these days it's just a history and GA community in Croatia gets smaller every day. Although we have a lot of airfields (looking at the chart) I avoid landing to grass stips because there's no warranty on their current condition.
Hvar is an interesting case.
I tried to fly there from the UK but it wasn't allowed (several years ago). It has no Customs.
But Hvar has a classy marina
(that's not my boat) and gets a lot of PC12-type traffic, so I am suprised that it doesn't have Customs.
Unije is a very small strip...
So, if you fly from a EU+Schengen country to Greece, you can depart from any airfield you like
IME, Greece does very much care where one is coming from, in some cases. For example at LGAL we had 2hrs Customs PNR if flying in from within the EU (e.g. Slovenia) but 24hrs Customs PNR if flying in from outside the EU (e.g. Croatia or Turkey). I think at other places it doesn't matter e.g. Corfu (which has H24 Customs) probably doesn't care where you come from.
