FRANCHI Bruno

PROF. BRUNO FRANCHI
He obtained his law degree from the University of Modena, submitting a thesis entitled “Air Traffic Services: Organisational Aspects”, with particular reference to the legal liability of air traffic controllers.
He is Associate Professor of Navigation and Transport Law (GIUR-02/B) at the Department of Law of the University of Modena and Reggio Emilia, where he teaches “air law” and “law and practice of aviation safety investigations”. In this capacity, he has organised and contributed to numerous academic and scientific initiatives devoted to the development, analysis and study of air law in Italy.
He formerly served as director of the “Master di 2° livello in diritto aeronautico e gestione dell’impresa aeronautica”, organised by the University of Modena and Reggio Emilia.
He was a member of ministerial commissions on flight safety and on the reform of the Italian Navigation Code (aeronautical section).
From October 1999 (the year of its establishment) until early 2024, he served as President/Extraordinary Commissioner of the Agenzia nazionale per la sicurezza del volo (ANSV), the Italian civil aviation safety investigation authority. During his tenure: he made a significant contribution to the establishment and development in Italy of an independent public authority endowed with the independence and impartiality required to ensure the proper, objective and effective conduct of safety investigations into accidents and incidents involving civil aircraft; he directed and coordinated the investigative activities of the ANSV; in implementation of EU Regulation No. 996/2010, he worked with the Italian Ministry of Justice to develop a model advance arrangement subsequently adopted by ANSV and signed with 140 Public Prosecutor’s Offices throughout Italy. These advance arrangements constitute an important precedent at both national and European Union level, demonstrating that pragmatic, as well as legal, solutions can be developed to reconcile the requirements of accident prevention and safety investigation with those of criminal justice and judicial investigations, without either sphere being adversely affected by the other.
He served as a lecturer on the course “Incidenti aeronautici: investigazioni e prevenzione”, organised by the Italian School for the Judiciary, Rome, 19–20 October 2015.
He served as a lecturer on the course “Sovranità territoriale e spazi internazionali: il mare, la terra e il cosmo”, organised by the Italian School for the Judiciary, Scandicci, 27–29 May 2019.
He served as a lecturer on the course “La colpa e i disastri”, organised by the Italian School for the Judiciary – Territorial Training Division of Genoa, Genoa, 12–13 May 2022.
He served as an expert trainer and lecturer on the course “Il diritto aeronautico (... e dello spazio)”, organised by the Italian School for the Judiciary, Naples, 1–3 December 2025.
He has repeatedly served as a lecturer on the “Training course in air law” organised by the Milan Bar Association.
From 2003 to 2023, he served as a lecturer on the “Flight Safety Courses” organised by the Istituto superiore per la sicurezza del volo (Higher Institute for Flight Safety) of the Italian Air Force.
He has collaborated with the Italian Ministry of Transport and Navigation as a technical and legal expert in the aviation sector.
He is a member of AIDINAT (Associazione italiana di diritto della navigazione e dei trasporti).
He is a member of the editorial board of the legal journal “Responsabilità civile e previdenza”.
He is a member of the scientific committee of the “Rivista del diritto della navigazione”.
He is a member of the Editorial Committee of the legal journal “Diritto dei trasporti”.
He is the author of numerous publications on air law, civil aviation and flight safety.
He has been a speaker at numerous conferences addressing issues relating to air law and flight safety.
He is a Full Member of the International Society of Air Safety Investigators (ISASI), the international professional organisation bringing together aircraft accident investigators and experts in aviation accident prevention.
He holds a valid Private Pilot Licence (Aeroplanes) and has approximately 1600 flight hours to his credit. He has also flown a wide range of military aircraft, including high-performance military jet aircraft.
In 2005, he was awarded the Diplôme Paul Tissandier by the Fédération Aéronautique Internationale (FAI), one of the FAI’s most prestigious distinctions, in recognition of his outstanding contribution to aviation and air sports in the field of flight safety («en reconnaissance des remarquables services rendus à l’aéronautique et aux sports aériens, dans le domaine de la sécurité des vols»).