A person who makes

'available, as a principal or an agent, accommodation

for the carriage of persons or cargo in

any part of the world' requiring a licence to

operate by the UK Civil Aviation Authority

(CAA) (Civil Aviation Act 1971). This is a wider

term than tour operator and includes, for

example, air brokers acting as agents for

airlines. The licence is the Air Travel

Organiser's licence (ATOL). The licence shows

that the organiser of charter flights has lodged

a bond with CAA to safeguard the holidaymakers'

money in case of the company failure.