“The ATM [air traffic management] industry has made good progress but there is still a long way to go. Both the industry and states can take important measures to further improve safety and transform ATM performance.” That was the position Jeff Poole, director general of the Civil Air Navigation Services Organization (Canso), expressed last week as he outlined the organization’s vision to improve aviation safety in Africa, while also achieving seamless regional airspace by explaining the steps necessary to transform ATM performance.
“Aviation is vital to African development, and air traffic management is critical to the safety, growth and development of aviation across the continent,” commented Poole at Canso’s October 8 Africa Conference in Abuja, Nigeria. “One of Canso’s strategies in improving safety in the region is to support a runway safety program to educate airport managers, ANSPs, pilots and air traffic controllers about the causes and risks related to unstable approaches.
Poole added, “Many ANSPs have difficulty in adequately funding the modernization and expansion of infrastructure.” Canso believes revenues generated by the civil aviation sector should be re-invested in the sector and that regional cooperation and integration is the best way to secure cost-effective investments and achieve better returns.