AAPA remains vigilant on safety standards

Thursday 20th November, 2008

Safety remains the air transport industry’s No. 1 priority, with the Association of Asia Pacific Airlines (AAPA) playing a critical role in ensuring that airlines in the region remain vigilant in maintaining the very highest safety standards. Over 100 airline safety professionals are gathered in Bali, Indonesia today for the Asia Pacific Aviation Safety Seminar 2008 (APASS 2008), organised by AAPA.Topics to be addressed include: safety culture, risk management, safety technology, flight operations, crew resource management, maintenance operations and flight data management. The seminar is hosted by Garuda Indonesia with sponsorship support from Airbus, Marsh, Sagem & CEFA Aviation.

Welcoming delegates to APASS 2008, AAPA Director General Mr. Andrew Herdman said, “AAPA carriers are amongst the safest in the world, with levels of safety performance comparable to major airlines in the United States and Europe.Nevertheless, 2007 saw a number of accidents involving Asia Pacific carriers.
Encouragingly, we have seen a welcome improvement in regional safety performance in 2008, with no major accidents so far this year. However, there is no room for complacency. Safety is an issue that demands constant vigilance, and the Association is strongly determined to ensure that the improvements achieved across the region this year are maintained in the future."

Furthermore, Mr. Herdman called upon the region’s governments to strengthen their regulatory oversight and to work with industry to ensure that the travelling public continues to have access to safe, secure and convenient air travel.

In his APASS 2008 keynote address, Pak Emirsyah Satar, President and CEO of Garuda Indonesia, emphasized that: “Aviation safety and security is an ongoing concern for all of us. I urge everyone in the industry to share the same commitment; one that focuses on building an internationally acknowledged safety system and procedures.” As a result, he added, “Asia Pacific will be able to generate greater confidence and trust in a broader spectrum of activities, such as the economy and tourism, which contribute to the region’s development.”

In addition to today’s safety seminar, AAPA is engaging with air transport regulators and other stakeholders to move forward on a new safety roadmap aimed at further strengthening regional safety oversight and performance. The Association is also collaborating with the Flight Safety Foundation on specific safety initiatives, including measures to reduce runway overruns and incursions.

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Association of Asia Pacific Airlines (AAPA)
The AAPA is the trade association of major scheduled international airlines based in the Asia - Pacific region. The AAPA permanent secretariat is headquartered in Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia with international representation in Brussels and Washington, D.C. Collectively, the 17 AAPA member airlines carry 290 million passengers and 10 million tonnes of cargo representing approximately one-fifth of global passenger traffic and one-third of global air cargo traffic respectively, and thus play a critically important role in the ongoing development of global aviation.

For further information, please contact:
Office of the Director General
Tel +603 2145 5600 Fax +603 2145 2500
email: odg@aapa.org.my