ICAO’s Statement on International Civil Aviation Day 2016

… Flying remains the safest form of transport-Dr. Aliu and Dr. Liu

The Council President of the International Civil Aviation Organization (ICAO), Dr. Olumuyiwa Benard Aliu, and ICAO Secretary General, Dr. Fang Liu, issued a joint statement today on the occasion of International Civil Aviation Day, 2016:

The theme for International Civil Aviation Day through 2018 is: “Working Together to Ensure No Country is Left Behind”.

In 2016, this theme provides an important reminder of the role of cooperation and partnership in everything we seek to achieve in global civil aviation.

R-L: The Council President of the International Civil Aviation Organization (ICAO), Dr. Olumuyiwa Benard Aliu, and ICAO Secretary General, Dr. Fang Liu

Flying remains the safest form of transport because aviation safety benefits from an incredible team effort by governments, airline and airport operators, manufacturers and service providers, maintenance staff and others who make safety their priority.

Cooperation also makes our aircraft and facilities more secure, and better prepared to adjust to new and emerging threats.

Likewise, the efficiency of air operations globally is being continuously improved through new cooperative approaches, such as Air Traffic Flow Management.

Greater liberalization and multilateralism have also been identified as crucial objectives for future air transport economic viability.

And in the Environmental domain especially in 2016, our community’s strong commitment to come together on behalf of our planet has helped aviation to once again show its strength and leadership through new and historic emissions control Standards and agreements.

Our “No Country is Left Behind” initiative has been transformative and widely commended by States and industry.

And we have been working tirelessly to promote the importance of civil aviation to socio-economic development and its prioritization in national and regional development and investment planning.

The entire aviation community has a role to play in this process, and all of us benefit when our network’s reach is extended and societies find greater peace and prosperity through newfound connections to the world.

International civil aviation remains our most remarkable example of successful human cooperation and global partnership, and a shining example to the world of how much we can achieve when we meet our shared challenges together.