UAE delegation takes part in ICAO Aviation security panel meeting

The 26th ICAO Aviation Security (AVSEC) Panel meeting was held in ICAO Headquarters, Montreal, Canada last week of April.
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The UAE delegation under the aegis of the General Civil Aviation Authority participated in the 26th ICAO Aviation Security Panel Meeting. The UAE delegation was headed by  Hamad Al Muhairi, assistant director general, Aviation security affairs sector. 

During the meeting the ICAO AVSEC Panel discussed many important papers presented by ICAO Contracting States and other stakeholders pertaining to Aviation Security. Some of the important issues discussed related to security risk to civil aviation from laser devices, cyber security, remotely piloted aircraft systems (RPAS), innovation in the field of AVSEC, other emerging threats, etc. The issue regarding the flight crew compartment security was especially discussed in light of the Germanwings Flight 9525 incident. 

The Panel members elected  Poppy Khoza, director of Civil Aviation of South Africa as the chairperson of the Panel for the first time. Khoza served as the vice chairperson of the ICAO AVSEC Panel under the chairmanship of Bernard Lim from Singapore during the year 2014.   

The ICAO AVSEC Panel agreed and recommended that ICAO and Member States should collaborate as well as continue to monitor the threat and risk to civil aviation in their efforts to develop proactive, risk-based measures that are proportionate to the threat. It also recommended that ICAO should continue to urge member States and other stakeholders to share risk information, particularly if it relates to the risk of overflying conflict zones.