Andrew Herdman, Director General, Association of Asia Pacific Airlines (AAPA), has been campaigning for standardisation of regulatory procedures with inputs from the APAC region. Herdman was in Delhi recently for the conference organised as part of the centenary celebrations of Indian civil aviation. In an interview with SP’s Aviation, Herdman talks about the issues that need to be addressed urgently. Excerpts from the interview.

SP’s Aviation (SP’s): You have mentioned how the US and European Union regulations dominate the global airline sector and how the Asia-Pacific region needs to contribute in this regard, could you give specific instances?

Andrew Herdman (Herdman): As there is a global emphasis on safety, security and environmental concerns, the need to have globalised regulatory mechanisms cannot be overstated. It is true that the US and Europe have been in the forefront when it comes to regulatory policies and there certainly are gaps as the issues in Asia are not factored in. Take accident investigations for instance and the need to standardise is urgent. I am happy that India’s Civil Aviation Secretary Dr Nasim Zaidi has mentioned about setting up of an independent investigation board which will be compliant with the norms of the International Civil Aviation Organisation (ICAO). There is need to raise global standards on safety and security and this can happen only when there is widespread participation.

Right now, safety is led by the Federal Aviation Administration of the US and the European Union, both driven by domestic political concerns. All harmonisation efforts focus on US-EU differences. The current regional challenges include responding to growth and assuring skill and resource levels; SSP and SMS implementation including ‘just culture’ and runway safety.

SP’s: What are the issues that need urgent attention of policy makers?

Herdman: Security is one. Right now, in most countries security at airports is good, however, passenger screening is getting extremely costly with rapid induction of sophisticated technologies. We are taking decisions when we are fearful and this in itself may prove to be counter-productive. We should avoid overreacting. There has to be a balance between screening innocent passengers and intelligence gathering to track down terrorists and other elements. We need to relook at passengers carrying liquids and gels. While security is important, customer service of airline passengers is also key and this calls for enormous training. Strict security prevails at airports around Asia and this drives up the overall cost on society both in terms of time and money.

The other important issue is that of environmental impact of the airline industry. There is no abatement in consumption of fuels, though we keep hearing on how fuel-efficient aircraft have become.

SP’s: As an Asia-Pacific association, what is your reading of the airlines sector in India?

Herdman: China and India have been growing at quite a pace since 2000 and we have seen the emergence of G-20 from G-7. Aviation is a catalyst for growth, but the outlook is to be cautious. With oil price volatility and its effect in India is being more due to taxes, global recovery itself will be hampered. It is heartening to note that there is tremendous growth of passenger movement, but cargo has been neglected. You need a dynamic cargo sector, the way Hong Kong and Dubai have emerged as both passenger and cargo hubs in the region. The Asia-Pacific region had 684 million passengers, 18 million tonnes of cargo, accounting for 30 per cent of global passenger traffic and 44 per cent of global cargo traffic. India’s contribution in air cargo has been negligible.

SP’s: What are the challenges for the sector in Asia?

Herdman: It will be that of managing the growth. Infrastructure, skilled manpower, deployment of right technologies, etc have to keep pace with the growth projections. There has to be constant capital investment in fleets, airports and other infrastructure. The Delhi airport is impressive and I understand that the government has plans for airport modernisation across the country and this augurs well.