IATA urges Thai government to sort out safety issues
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The International Air Transport Association (IATA) has called on the Thai government to “urgently” address its aviation safety and capacity issues.
In a statement released on Thursday, the global aviation body said the government “must address” the concerns highlighted by the International Civil Aviation Organization (ICAO) and Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) last year, which led to the downgrading of Thailand’s FAA status.
“These assessments look at what the government is doing — not the airlines,” said IATA’s director-general & CEO, Tony Tyler. “ICAO and the US FAA have pointed out safety oversight concerns and divergence from global standards at the government level. Safety is aviation’s top priority. The government of Thailand must address these concerns in support of a vibrant aviation sector that is the backbone of travel and tourism.”
IATA has also requested that Thailand ensures that all Thai airlines are registered with the IATA Operational Safety Audit (IOSA). “This would not absolve the government of its responsibility to do better in aligning its oversight programmes to global standards. But it would send a strong signal that Thailand is serious about its commitment to world-class safety,” Tyler added.
At present, only Thai Airways, Bangkok Airways, Thai Lion Air and Orient Thai Airlines are on the IOSA registry.
In addition, IATA raised concerns about “soft spots” on the tarmac, taxiways and apron area at Bangkok’s Suvarnabhumi Airport, saying this issue “must be permanently resolved”.
IATA also warned that Suvarnabhumi is facing a “capacity crunch”, with the current annual throughput of 52 million passengers already exceeding the maximum capacity of 45m. And with traffic increasing 10% annually, the association called for the “fast-tracking” of terminal expansion plans and the development of a third runway.
“A permanent fix for the frequent tarmac, taxiway and apron closures for resurfacing will address near-term runway capacity concerns. But a runway takes a long-time to build, so it is important that that plans for the third runway continue to move forward,” said Tyler.
Finally, IATA called on the Thai government to stop increasing taxes and fees relating to the aviation industry.
“In the face of intense competition, Thailand’s aviation competitiveness is being chipped away with various new or increased taxes and charges. It is in Thailand’s long-term self-interest to review and abandon proposals that increase the cost of transportation. That includes taxes or charges,” Tyler urged.
“Aviation is critical to Thailand’s economic success. It is the backbone of the tourism industry and provides critical global business links. We estimate that today aviation and related activities account for some two million Thai jobs and generate US$29 billion in GDP. And by 2035 we could see that grow to 3.8m jobs and US$53bn in GDP. If realised, that potential 83% growth would have a broad and positive impact across the Thai economy. It is in jeopardy, however, unless key issues of safety, capacity and costs are addressed urgently,” said Tyler concluded.
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