The two industry trade bodies are collaborating to reinforce standardisation, promote safety data sharing and enhance sector resilience.
The International Air Transport Association (IATA) and Airport Services Association (ASA) are extending their collaboration to improve ground handling safety and efficiency with Fabio Gamba, ASA’s Director General, saying the agreement marks a “significant milestone” that leverages the expertise of both organisations. “By coordinating our approach, we will ensure more robust support for ground and cargo handling professionals worldwide,” he continued.
The goal is for both organisations to ensure that best practices and standards are in place for the entire industry to rely on.
The collaboration will involve both organisations sharing and analysing safety information to proactively address safety issues related to ground and cargo handling, using ASA’s Safety Incident Database and IATA’s Incident Data Exchange. The work to develop best practices and standards will focus on key documents such as the IATA Ground Operations Manual (IGOM) and the IATA Airport Handling Manual (AHM).
“Global standards make aviation safer and ASA and its members have been pivotal in helping develop the IATA ground handling standards we rely on today. By sharing data, we will be able to support this vital activity with data-drive insights and decisions,” said Nick Careen, SVO Operations, Safety and Security at IATA. “Maximising the impact of data relies on broad contributions,” he continued. “We encourage ground handler participation to strengthen our collective insights.”
Image source: Menzies Aviation
