Civil Aeronautics Administration Director-General Lin Kuo-shian has called on the international community to support Taiwan’s bid for meaningful participation in the International Civil Aviation Organization, stating the move would strengthen the global air travel environment.
“The CAA is willing and able to make significant contributions to the development of international civil aviation systems, and meaningful participation in ICAO would enable us to do so,” Lin said. “ICAO’s goal of a seamless sky would be achieved.”
Though not a member of the U.N. specialized agency, Taiwan has sole responsibility for administering the Taipei Flight Information Region. Among the busiest air transport hubs in Asia, the Taipei FIR provided navigation services to more than 1.5 million flights carrying some 58 million passengers last year.
Lin said the CAA has much to share with ICAO members owing to its high level of technological expertise. “In 2011, the Taipei FIR became the first in Asia to implement the CNS/ATM [communications, navigation, surveillance and air traffic management] system,” he explained. “And we’re now moving forward with the adoption of globally uniform Aviation System Block Upgrade Modules, another ICAO initiative to facilitate even closer cooperation among neighboring regions.”
Conversely, the director-general stressed the challenges Taiwan faces due to its omission from the agency, noting that it does not receive official notification of new ICAO regulations.
“An example was the introduction of enhanced security measures on LAGs [liquids, aerosols and gels] in cabin luggage starting March 2007. This confidential policy was formulated by ICAO and its members in October 2006, but we didn’t learn about it until late December 2006,” he said. “Due to the absence of timely and detailed information, there was some confusion over the definition of LAGs, which led to complaints from passengers.”
Lin urged the international community to back Taiwan’s bid to attend this year’s ICAO Assembly from Sept. 27 to Oct. 7 at the organization’s headquarters in Montreal, Canada. He called attention to its successful participation in the last edition of the triennial meeting in September 2013 as a guest of the council president.
“It allowed us to closely observe deliberations concerning various regulations, safeguard our interests in the global aviation sector, and share our experiences and expertise with representatives from other countries,” he stressed. “Taiwan could make significant contributions to global civil aviation if allowed meaningful participation in ICAO.” (E)