Airline body calls for level playing field
Andrew Herdman, director general, of the Association of Asia Pacific Airlines (AAPA), has called for an overhaul in the way security agencies treat airline passengers.
"What we have is a Mistrusted Traveller Programme, with 100% enrolment," he told the International Aviation Club, in Washington DC.
‘We need to break free of the current mindset that by default treats every passenger as a potential terrorist, leading to overwhelmingly false positives in the screening process," Herdman added.
"Together with governments, we already know a lot about our passengers long before they turn up at the airport.
"We need to focus on ways to use that information to carry out more effective risk assessments, and streamline the security screening process for the benefit of all passengers," he said.
Herdman called on governments to "recognise the benefits of closer international cooperation, and mutual recognition of respective security regimes".
"The international aviation system is an integrated global network. The overall robustness of the system depends on a web of relationships amongst the many stakeholders involved."
Herdman said despite excellent coordination work carried out by ICAO, some governments, including the US Government and EU, "have taken it upon themselves to enforce stricter regulations on selected foreign carriers and their governments through category downgrades in the case of the US, and the EU Safety List which imposes an operating ban on selected airlines.
"In both cases," Herdman said, "the target is perceived shortcomings of regulatory oversight by foreign governments not meeting established ICAO standards.
"Our concern is that such actions may be well intentioned, but are fundamentally misguided, lacking transparency, with no clarity as to what is required to get off the list.
"From an airline perspective, it appears unjust to be punished simply in order to put pressure on another foreign government," Herdman added.
Ian Jarrett
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