ICAO’s first global safety report available online

The International Civil Aviation Organization (ICAO) today released the “State of Global Aviation Safety – 2011”, a unique snapshot of worldwide aviation safety performance and collaborative efforts among international air transport stakeholders to further improve safety in light of the sustained growth of the sector.

“This is a first in the history of ICAO,” said Raymond Benjamin, Secretary General of ICAO. “While safety information is readily available from a number of sources, this innovative report presents a compelling and holistic plan for ICAO and the industry to consistently improve aviation safety, our number one objective.”

“Air transport remains our safest form of transportation, and through our collective efforts, we have entered the safest period in global aviation history. But any accident is one too many, so as aviation continues to grow worldwide, we will need to do more to maintain this impressive record,” he emphasized.

Worldwide scheduled traffic volume experienced a year-over-year increase of 4.5 per cent in 2010, setting a new record of more than 30.5 million departures. By 2030, that number is expected to reach more than 52 million annually.

The publication, available to the general public online on the Organization’s website, combines comprehensive traffic statistics and accident trends as well as the full range of initiatives undertaken by ICAO and its partners to address the most serious safety issues. These include runway-related events, the number one cause of fatal accidents, pilot fatigue and an anticipated shortage of qualified aviation professionals.

The well-illustrated document, in simple language, covers initiatives within the four components of the ICAO safety framework including: policy and standardization; safety monitoring; safety analysis; and implementation of safety programmes. The strategy is intended to achieve systemic safety improvements that yield sustainable results.