Minister calls for aviation authority to raise standards

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Minister calls for aviation authority to raise standards

9:28 CAT | 21 Jul 2017

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File photo

Transport Minister Carlos Mesquita has called on the regulatory body for aviation, the Mozambique Civil Aviation Authority (IACM), to ensure that international standards are maintained to avoid any repetition of the situation where the country’s airlines were banned from entering the airspace of the European Union.

In 2011, Mozambique was put on the European Union blacklist. This was not because of any safety problems with Mozambique Airlines (LAM) or any other Mozambican air company, but because IACM was accused of not meeting EU standards.

The country was only removed from the list in May this year following improvements in aviation safety.

Speaking at the end of a working visit on Thursday to the IACM headquarters in Maputo, the minister stated, “IACM cannot relax just because the airlines have been withdrawn from the blacklist. We need to persevere with the reforms to maintain and improve on the gains achieved”.

He added that steps are needed to raise levels of security and regulation in the light of international conventions on aviation covering air operators and airport infrastructure.

Mesquita visited IACM to receive a briefing on the functioning of the institution, particularly on reforms underway on its legal framework, the strengthening of its operational capacity, and the development of its human resources.

In particular, he exhorted IACM to develop its work in preparation for an audit by the International Civil Aviation Organisation (ICAO), which is due to take place in September 2018, so that it avoids any penalties that could affect the credibility and good image of the country.

During the last audit, ICAO called for special attention to be paid to human resources, particularly on training, and the attraction and retention of specialised staff. For this, the minister emphasised the collaboration that exists between the Ministry of Transport and the Ministry of Defence and Ministry of the Interior.

Mesquita challenged IACM to improve its collection of fees for services rendered. He added that it also needs to pay extra attention to improving liaison with other bodies including immigration, customs, police, and airport authorities.

In fact, the EU ban did not have any practical effects as LAM does not have the capacity to operate any intercontinental flights. The only European Union airline to fly to Maputo is the Portuguese company, TAP, which has a code sharing arrangement with LAM. The other companies operating intercontinental routes from Maputo are Qatar Airways and Turkish Airlines.

Source: AIM