Media Release
SAFETY
AND SECURITY AT THE HEART OF KEY ICAO ACHIEVEMENTS FOR 2001
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Montreal,
27 December 2001
-A global strategy to reinforce the safety and security of international civil
aviation, following the tragic events of 11 September in the United States of
America, highlights a year of ground-breaking achievements for the
International Civil Aviation Organization (ICAO) during 2001. The impact of the
September events on world air traffic was exceptionally harsh. In 2001 there
was a 6 per cent decrease over 2000 traffic figures.
In his
year-end message, the President of the Council of ICAO, Dr: Assad Kotaite, reflects on the determination of the 187
Contracting States of the Organization to ensure that civilian aircraft are never
again used as weapons of mass destruction and to restore public confidence in a
system that is fundamentally sound.
"The
tragic events in which thousands of innocent lives were destroyed have
sharpened the resolve of the world civil aviation community to do all that is
necessary so that air transport remains the safest and most efficient system of
mass transportation ever created," he emphasizes.
"The
decisions of the 33rd Session of the ICAO Assembly, held from 25 September to 5
October, along with other key achievements of the past year, provide us with
the tools we need to meet the many complex technical, regulatory and economic
challenges that lie before us in achieving that goal," he adds.
A record
1130 participants from 169 Contracting States and observers from 32
international civil aviation organizations took part in the ICAO triennial
Assembly, which endorsed the convening of an international high-Ievel, ministerial conference on aviation security for
"preventing, combatting and eradicating acts of
terrorism involving civil aviation",
The
conference, to be held on 19 and 20 February 2002, is expected to endorse an
ICAO Plan of Action for Strengthening Aviation Security and reaffirm the
responsibility of States to provide aviation security for their territories.
The
Conference will also consider establishing a programme
to audit the implementation of ICAO security-related standards in Contracting
States; formulating a financial and human resource plan for enhanced ICAO activities
in aviation security; strengthening the partnership on aviation security
matters between aviation and other authorities, and between government and
industry; as well as developing means for restoring public confidence in air
travel and the financial health of the air transport industry.
Aviation
safety will be strengthened further with the Assembly's approval for expanding
the Universal Safety Oversight Audit Programme
(USOAP) as of 2004. The Programme consists of regular
mandatory, systematic and harmonized safety audits carried out by ICAO in all
187 Contracting States. Since its creation on 1 January 1999, it has proven
effective in identifying and correcting safety deficiencies in areas of
personnel licensing and airworthiness and operation of aircraft; it will now
include air traffic services, aerodromes and the core elements of accident and
incident investigation.
To provide
Contracting States with the resources they require to correct deficiencies
identified through the USOAP and to implement other safety-related projects,
the Assembly endorsed the establishment of an International Financial Facility
for Aviation Safety (IFFAS). In addition, because of decreased funding from the
United Nations Development Programme (UNDP), the
Assembly also agreed to strengthen the ICAO Technical Co-operation Programme, one of the main instruments in providing support
to States in remedying deficiencies identified through ICAO'
s assessment and audit activities. During 2001, the Programme
reached a new record high of US 112 million dollars.
The
cancellation of war risk insurance of airline operators and other parties
following the events of 11 September was addressed by ICAO through the
creation, in October, of a special group mandated to develop principles for an
appropriate international mechanism in the field of aviation war risk
insurance. The Group will meet again early in the new year to finalize its
recommendations to the ICAO Council. The President of the Council appealed
successfully to Contracting States to extend or provide coverage, as required,
until the international mechanism is in place. War risk insurance is required
for the granting of operating certificates to airlines.
In another
safety-related decision, the Assembly adopted a resolution to deal with the
increase over the past few years in the num her and gravity of reported
incidents involving unruly passengers on board civil aircraft. It calls on all
States to enact appropriate laws and regulations, based on a proposed common
list of offences and a model jurisdictional clause designed to ensure effective
prosecution of perpetrators wherever an act may have been committed.
The Assembly
endorsed the decision of the ICAO Council for a new, stricter Chapter 4
standard for aircraft noise reduction. The new standard, effective 1 January
2006 for new aircraft design, is based on a recommendation earlier in the year
by the Organization's Committee on Aviation Environmental Protection (CAEP).
The Assembly also endorsed the concept of a balanced approach to noise
management, consisting of four principal elements, namely reduction at source
(quieter aircraft), land-use planning and management around airports, noise
abatement operational procedures, and operating restrictions on noisy aircraft.
The Assembly
also produced a breakthrough on the difficult question of operating
restrictions on the noisiest Chapter 3 aircraft. States needing to introduce
such restrictions at an airport with severe noise problems will now have a
process to enable them to do so. This decision was instrumental regarding the
settlement of a difference between the United States and the 1 S members of the
European Union over the issue of "hush kitted" aircraft.
An
international Colloquium on the Environmental Aspects of Aviation held at ICAO
Headquarters in April provided a timely context for members of the world
aviation community to increase their awareness of the environmental problems
associated with civil aviation, exchange views on potential solutions, and to
familiarize themselves with the work of CAEP, in preparation for the Assembly.
A formal
agreement was reached on a new air route structure, available as from I
February 2001, over the North Pole that will considerably cut distances on
flights linking North America and Europe to Asia and the Pacific Region. This
will result in significantly shorter flight times, more convenient flight
schedules, environmental benefits due to reduced fuel bum, and considerable
economic advantages to airlines and the flying public.
The decision
was taken to convene a Worldwide Air Transport Conference on "Challenges
and Opportunities of Liberalization", from 24 to 29 March 2003, to develop
a framework for the progressive liberalization, of international air transport,
with safeguards to ensure fair competition, safety and security, and including
measures to ensure the effective and sustained participation of developing
countries.
An international
treaty on financing and leasing of aircraft was signed during a Diplomatic
Conference held under the joint auspices of the International Civil Aviation
Organization (ICAO) and the International Institute for the Unification of
Private Law (UNIDROIT). The new legal instrument provides for the creation of
an international registration system, which will reduce the risks of lending
for aircraft financiers, banks and other financing institutions involved in
aircraft purchasing and leasing, thus reducing the cost of credit. Financing
and leasing costs represent on average about eight per cent of total operating
expenses of international scheduled airlines. This is the first time that an
international security right is created at the international level, which can
be registered internationally and will then be subject to national enforcement.
The
triennial budget of the Organization was established as follow:
2002 - US
$56 743 000
2003 - US $57 584 000
2004 - US $60 456 000
A new
Council was elected for a three-year term. The 33-member governing body of the
Organization includes: Algeria, Argentina, Australia, Brazil, Cameroon, Canada,
China, Costa Rica, Cuba, Czech Republic, Egypt, Ethiopia, France, Germany,
India, Ireland, Italy, Japan, Lebanon, Mauritius, Mexico, Nigeria, Pakistan,
Paraguay, Republic of Korea, Russian Federation, Saudi Arabia, Senegal, Spain,
Sweden, United Kingdom, United States and Venezuela.
Dr. Assad Kotaite was elected for a tenth consecutive term as
President of the ICAO Council. His new term runs to 2004.
The Federal
Republic of Yugoslavia and the Principality of Andorra became ICAO's 186th and
187th Contracting States.
The 35th
ICAO Edward Warner Award, the highest honour in the
world of civil aviation, was conferred on Petro Vasilyevich
Balabuyev (Ukraine), in recognition of his eminent
contribution to international civil aviation, through his lifetime achievements
as an aircraft designer.
Full details
on these and other ICAO achievements and activities can be accessed on the
Organization's web site: www.icao.int.
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ICAO was created in 1944 to
promote safe and orderly development of civil aviation in the world. A
specialized agency of the United Nations, it sets international standards and
regulations necessary for the safety, security efficiency and regularity of
air transport and serves as the medium for cooperation in all fields of civil
aviation among its 187 Contracting States. |
December 2001
I believe
that one way the year 2001 will be remembered is by the resilience and the
determination of civil aviation to address boldly and courageously the greatest
challenge of its short yet dramatic history, a moment in time we now refer to
as "11 September".
Indeed, the
tragic events of that day in the United States, in which thousands of innocent
lives were destroyed, sharpened the resolve of the world civil aviation
community to ensure that air transport remains the safest and most efficient
system of mass transportation ever created. All are united as never before in
their common purpose to prevent civilian aircraft from ever again being used as
weapons of destruction and to restore public confidence in a system that is
fundamentally sound.
It is
crucial that we succeed, for air transport has evolved into such an integral
and vital part of our global society. It is a driver of economic development, a
catalyst for business and tourism, and a vehicle for social and cultural
development worldwide. Thanks to its unique ability to bring people together
over vast distances, quickly and safely, it is immensely valuable to our growth
as individuals and as citizens of a shrinking planet.
To nourish
and protect international civil aviation from all harm is still our primary
objective, our raison d'etre. The decisions of
the 33rd Session of the ICAO Assembly, held from 25 September to 5 October,
along with other key achievements of the past year, provide us with many of the
tools we need to meet the complex technical, regulatory and economic challenges
that lie before us in achieving that goal.
As always in
demanding times, I am again inspired by the Preamble to the Convention on
International Civil Aviation, particularly the following excerpt:
" Whereas the future development of international civil aviation can greatly help to create and preserve friendship and understanding among the nations and peoples of the world. ..to promote that cooperation between nations and peoples upon which the peace of the world depends..."
In the
present context, these words carry a special meaning. Civil aviation can help
us build a better world for all mankind to the extent that we appreciate and
nurture the universality of air travel, that we create the conditions for
international civil aviation to develop in a safe and orderly manner, and that
we make it possible for international air transport services to be established
on the basis of equality of opportunity and operated soundly and economically.
INTERNATIONAL CIVIL AVIATION ORGANIZATION
999 University Street,
Montreal, P; Q.,
Canada
H3C 5H7
TEL: (514) 954-8220-1-2
FAX: (514) 954-6376
E-MAIL: icaohq@icao.org