ACI ASIA-PACIFIC NEWS
Share
ACI Asia-Pacific reports on the latest events, news and developments from across the busy region.
ACI has strong presence at 56th DGCA Conference
An ACI delegation spearheaded by ACI World director general, Angela Gittens, and ACI Asia-Pacific’s regional director, Patti Chau, and deputy director, Ada Tse, attended ICAO’s recent Conference of Directors General of Civil Aviation, Asia and Pacific Region (56th DGCA Conference) in Kathmandu, Nepal.
This year’s theme was ‘Harmonising Efforts to Meet the Capacity Constraints’, and the topic was addressed directly by ACI World’s Gittens during a panel discussion in which she stated that “efficiency and co-ordination” are key to addressing Asia-Pacific’s capacity crunch.
She elaborated on the three necessary pillars of improving capacity: using what we have efficiently, protecting the use of what we have, and developing more when necessary. She also underlined the importance of safeguarding the socio-economic benefits that aviation provides to the region at large.
To advocate airports’ position and ACI’s initiatives to the ICAO States, ACI also submitted four Discussion Papers to the DGCA during the course of the event.
One paper covered ACI’s efforts to accommodate the needs of people with disabilities, emphasising the important role airports play in facilitating the travel requirements of passengers with disabilities, a group that is growing in size due to the ageing global population and the increasing affordability of air travel.
The paper also highlighted ACI’s recently published Airports & Persons with Disabilities Handbook which provides guidance to airports including, but not limited to, innovative solutions to FIDS, mobile apps and easier access to airport facilities and toilets.
This is in line with the resolution adopted at the ACI World Annual General Assembly in April, and States at the DGCA were invited to take note of these efforts which require awareness and collaboration by all stakeholders.
A second paper covered the organisation’s contributions to combat climate change. The paper highlighted and noted the Special Report on Global Warming of 1.5°C published by the United Nations’ Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC) in October 2018, and the imminent entry into force of the Paris Agreement.
The paper also updated the conference on ACI’s initiatives in climate change mitigation, namely the Airport Carbon Accreditation programme and the promotion of Airport Carbon and Emissions Reporting Tool (ACERT). Delegates were invited to encourage aerodrome operators to adopt ACERT and include Airport Carbon Accreditation in their respective plans to reduce carbon emissions in aviation.
ACI’s third paper was on promoting aerodrome certification with ACI’s APEX in Safety initiative and updates on the Beijing Declaration.
It included input from Bhutan, Vanuatu and ACI about the efforts States and airports were making to enhance aerodrome safety, particularly with regards to achieving the Beijing Declaration target of having all international aerodromes certified by 2020.
These efforts we revealed, mainly consisted of organising peer reviews of aerodrome safety between airports under the ACI APEX in Safety programme, and delivering relevant training programmes – some of them jointly organised by ACI and ICAO – such as those on aerodrome certification and Global Reporting Format (GRF) for Runway Surface Conditions.
The paper also updated the conference on ACI’s efforts in safety data collection, participation in RASG-APAC, the implementation of A-CDM and the sharing of training resources with States in response to the Beijing Declaration.
Besides noting the various collaborative efforts to the conference, States were also urged to consider APEX in Safety as part of their National Aviation Safety Plan as a means of improving compliance to safety enhancement initiatives and requirements.
The fourth paper submitted jointly with IATA, was about the taxation of international air transport. The paper called for attention to the existing issues of taxation on air transport and urged the aviation industry to engage more in the dialogue with Treasury Departments/Ministries of Finance and taxation authorities to enhance State awareness of ICAO’s Policies on Taxation in the Field of International Air Transport (Doc 8632) and to identify ways to establish appropriate analyses on the costs and benefits of taxation to maximise States’ economic benefits of aviation.
Brisbane hosts APEX in Security Review
The first APEX in Security Review in Australia was conducted at Brisbane Airport on May 27-31. The review team comprised of security experts from Singapore Changi, Dublin and Sydney airports and staff from the Regional Office and ACI World. After a week long review and discussions, a number of best practice recommendations were made by the team
to help enhance security measures at Brisbane Airport.
ACI Asia-Pacific publications
We would like to bring your attention to three publications – the ACI Runway Safety Handbook; the ACI Asia-Pacific Green Airports Recognition 2019 report; and the ACI Asia-Pacific 2018 Economic Review.
Runway safety is a significant operational challenge and a top priority for airports, which is why ACI is particularly proud to unveil an Arabic version of ACI Runway Safety Handbook.
Aimed at airport operators, its contents is distilled from a wide range of guidance material from civil aviation authorities across the globe, ACI member airports’ operational safety procedures, ICAO guidelines and other international aviation organisations’ publications pertaining to runway safety.
The ACI Asia-Pacific Green Airports Recognition 2019 publication highlights projects at 19 different member airports and reveals how each has contributed to the respective airport’s sustainable growth and development.
Benefits include becoming more energy efficient, making better use of resources, adopting clean, environmentally friendly technology and empowering the communities they serve.
The Green Airports Recognition programme aims to promote best practices that minimise aviation’s impact on the environment by recognising some of the outstanding environmental accomplishments by airports in our region.
The fourth edition of the annual economic publication, the ACI Asia-Pacific 2018 Economic Review, affirms our commitment to airport economics matters through regionalised analysis and research, and advocacy on policy issues.
Compiled under the direction of the Regional Economics Committee, this edition provides regional insights on the economic and business environment, identifies trends in air traffic, highlights major airport developments projects and privatisation trends, and examines key performance indicators on airport economics.
It also includes a focus on ‘Airport Networks’, updating members on the latest developments on this topic, and discussions on how airports are meeting the capacity challenge.
If you wish to learn more about the Review, or any of other publications, please contact us at communications@aci-asiapac.aero.
The importance of cybersecurity collaboration
As part of the industry’s efforts to enhance and strengthen regional aviation cyber-resilience, ACI Asia-Pacific was invited to speak at an Aviation Cyber Resilience Workshop organised by the Association of Asia Pacific Airlines (AAPA) in Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia, on June 13.
The workshop – the third in a series of four aimed at bringing together regional stakeholders to raise awareness on cyber resilience and share best practices in addressing cyber threats – was attended by over 60 participants from airports, airlines and airport service providers across the region. The panel discussion that the Regional Office took part in explored how different regional parties, including State regulators, airlines, airports, and industry associations, can better collaborate and leverage resources to strengthen capabilities and resilience on cybersecurity.
A number of ACI’s initiatives on cybersecurity were highlighted in the discussion, such as the handbook on cybersecurity for airport executives, the online cyber self-assessment tool, and various training courses.
