4.—(1) Before determining an appeal, the appeal body may afford the appellant, the regulator and any affected party an opportunity of appearing before and being heard by a person appointed by it (the “person holding the hearing”) and it must do so in any case where a request is made by the appellant, the regulator or any affected party.
(2) A hearing held under sub-paragraph (1) may, if the person holding the hearing so decides, be held wholly or partly, in private.
(3) Where the appeal body causes a hearing to be held under sub-paragraph (1) it must give the appellant, the regulator and any affected party at least 24 days notice (or such shorter period of notice as they may agree) of the date, time and place fixed for the holding of the hearing.
(4) In the case of a hearing which is to be held wholly or partly in public, the appeal body must, at least 24 days before the date fixed for the holding of the hearing—
(a)publish a copy of the notice referred to in sub-paragraph (3) in an appropriate international aviation publication; and
(b)serve a copy of that notice on every interested party who has made representations in writing to the appeal body.
(5) The appeal body may vary the date fixed for the holding of any hearing and sub-paragraphs (3) and (4) apply to the variation of a date as they applied to the date originally fixed.
(6) The appeal body may vary the time or place for the holding of a hearing and must give such notice of any such variation as appears to the appeal body to be reasonable.
(7) The persons entitled to be heard at a hearing are the appellant, the regulator and any affected party.
(8) Nothing in sub-paragraph (7) prevents the person holding the hearing from permitting any other persons to be heard at the hearing and such permission must not be unreasonably withheld.
(9) After the conclusion of a hearing, the person holding the hearing must make a report in writing to the appeal body which must include that person’s conclusions and recommendations, or decision not to make any recommendation and in all cases the reasons supporting the report.
(10) Paragraph 4(5) and (6) of Schedule 4 applies to hearings held under this paragraph as if references to the appointed person in those paragraphs were references to the person holding the hearing under this paragraph.