MPs will soon debate a bill updating the laws surrounding aviation.

The Civil Aviation (Air Transport Licensing) Bill 2007 sets up an Air Transport Licensing Panel to handle licences, consisting of the Civil Aviation Director, the Director of Tourism and the Financial Secretary.

Civil Aviation Director Ian MacIntyre said the panel would be more specialist in nature than the Airport Licensing Board.

He said the Act, tabled last week, was also modernising some of the terminology which hasn't changed since the 1950s.