IATA chief calls for better dialogue over airline safety
IATA is calling for better communication between regulators and airlines over flight safety.
Speaking at the IATA Safety and Flight Operations Conference in Seoul, Republic of Korea, the association said there needs to be better dialogue.
Director general and CEO Alexandre de Juniac pointed to last month’s decision by the UK and US to ban large electronic devices from passenger cabins on some flights from the Middle East and North Africa.
“There was no consultation with airlines and the measure challenged public confidence with inconsistencies, while the safety concerns over concentrations of lithium batteries in the aircraft hold have not been adequately considered or addressed,” he said.
“The learnings from this are many – governments need to share information, they need to consult with industry, and they need to support the International Civil Aviation Organization (ICAO) as it develops a global aviation security plan.”
He also called for tighter laws on the use of drones near airports.
“The great majority of drone owners operate their devices responsibly, but it is also the case that the number of incidents is rising,” he said.
“There is significant work being developed at ICAO to produce standards for the larger drones that are equipped to share the airspace with manned aircraft. However, we need to ensure that the smaller drones, whether intended for recreational or commercial use, are kept out of airspace used for approach and landing operations of air transport.”
Juniac also called for global standards for air accident investigations.
“Global standards exist, but they are not being applied universally,” he said.
“The investigation process is one of our most important learning tools when building global standards.”
He said a recent study showed that of the approximately 1,000 accidents over the last decade, accident reports were available for only around 300 of them.
“And of those, many had room for improvement. To learn from an accident, we need reports that are complete, accessible and timely. We also need states to fully respect the standards and processes enshrined in global agreements for participation in the investigation by all specified parties.”
Bev
Editor in chief Bev Fearis has been a travel journalist for 25 years. She started her career at Travel Weekly, where she became deputy news editor, before joining Business Traveller as deputy editor and launching the magazine’s website. She has also written travel features, news and expert comment for the Guardian, Observer, Times, Telegraph, Boundless and other consumer titles and was named one of the top 50 UK travel journalists by the Press Gazette.
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