Govt to speed up action to boost aviation safety
THE government will speed up its action plan to meet the safety requirements of the International Civil Aviation Organisation (ICAO) within the next six months after the country was red-flagged about a year ago, Transport Minister Arkhom Termpittayapaisit
The ICAO’s regional director for the Asia Pacific, Arun Mishra, met yesterday with Prime Minister Prayut Chan-o-cha and urged the country to quickly solve its problems so that Thailand can become a stronger aviation hub.
The ICAO says the Thai tourism industry will also benefit from speedy remedial action, as more foreign airlines want to fly to Thailand.
Arkhom said the ICAO had sent 7-8 experts on aviation safety to help Thailand overhaul its regulatory system, while the Cabinet recently approved a plan to hire several experts from Britain to help train local officials for auditing airlines that operate here.
The government has also approved a budget for the Royal Thai Air Force to train a number of airline auditors.
A shortage of auditors has been blamed for lax supervision of Thai-registered airlines, the number of which has risen sharply over the past few years.
Arkhom said Thailand needs at least 30 specialists to audit airlines operating in the country over the next five years, so the Air Force would send its pilots for training to be airline safety auditors. They would then work according to new rules and regulations developed by the ICAO to ensure overall safety in the aviation sector. These regulations cover airlines as well as their aircraft, which need to be certified to meet the ICAO requirements. The minister said the auditing process would begin next month based on rules and regulations in new safety manuals formulated in cooperation with the ICAO experts.
He said the ICAO expects Thailand to quickly address the safety issues so the country can help promote tourism not only in Thailand but across the Asia Pacific, as Thailand is currently an aviation centre in the region.
According to Arkhom, the government expects to complete its action plan on issuing new certificates within the next six months. After that, there will be an internal evaluation of the country’s overall aviation safety measures. The ICAO will later be invited to assess these measures, covering a total of 33 items in eight areas, he said. The government will also ensure that work on legal amendments and manpower recruitment to support the new regulatory system are completed within the next six months.
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