NOTAM Law and Legal Definition
NOTAM is the quasi-acronym for a "Notice To Airmen". NOTAMs are created and transmitted by government agencies and airport operators under guidelines specified by Annex 15: Aeronautical Information Services of the Convention on International Civil Aviation (CICA). The term NOTAM came into common use rather than the more formal Notice to Airmen following the ratification of the CICA, which came into effect on April 4, 1947. A NOTAM is filed with an aviation authority to alert aircraft pilots of any hazards en route or at a specific location. The authority in turn provides a means of disseminating relevant NOTAMs to pilots.
NOTAMs are issued (and reported) for a number of reasons, such as:
1.hazards such as air-shows, parachute jumps, kite flying, rocket launches, etc.
2.flights by important people such as heads of state (sometimes referred to as Temporary Flight Restrictions, TFRs) ;
3.closed runways ;
4.inoperable radio navigational aids ;
5.military exercises with resulting airspace restrictions ;
6. inoperable lights on tall obstructions ;
7.temporary erection of obstacles near airfields (e.g. cranes)