A global group of leading business aviation organisations has launched a campaign to combat illegal on-demand charter flights in the sector.
The group, called the Air Charter Safety Alliance, will raise awareness among potential customers, charter brokers, ministries of transport, and national aviation authorities regarding the use of unauthorised aircraft operators for on-demand flights.
While the overwhelming majority of on-demand charter flights comply with national and international safety standards, there have been instances of unauthorised aircraft operators actively avoiding aviation authority oversight, placing at risk the safety of unwitting passengers and hurting the economic health of approved charter operators.
Over the next three months, the coalition hopes to collate best practices from the various associations, create an online platform and initiate an online educational campaign to make main stakeholders aware of the dangers of illegal charter.
The coalition will develop and promote several safety programmes that assist on-demand charter operators while continuing to improve their already impressive safety performance.
Robert Baltus, chief operating officer of the European Business Aviation Association, said, “Business aviation is known as the most flexible means of transportation, using the highest safety standards, and EBAA and our partners aim to ensure that the travelling public can continue to trust our industry.
Ali Alnaqbi, Executive Chairman of the Middle East Business Aviation Association, was blunt, “Illegal chartering continues to have a huge negative impact on the business aviation industry worldwide.
“Unless a global approach is taken to fight to eliminate the illegal chartering, this issue cannot be solved at an individual scale.
“An international coalition is the need of the hour to put our hands on the routes of illegal chartering and work together to come up with a global constant process to eradicate this issue.”
