Will Post Safety Audit Records Of Member Carriers

The International Civil Aviation Organization (ICAO), the United Nations' aviation arm, will soon begin calling out countries with poor air safety records by posting their safety records online, ICAO chief Assad Kotaite said Monday.

The AFP reports Kotaite said the ICAO will post summaries of safety audits of all its 189 member countries conducted since 1999 on its website. He said the information will allow governments and travelers alike to more easily identify problem carriers.

"By being transparent and freely sharing information with each other and the public, you recapture the ability to act as one, to reinforce each others' actions, and to strengthen public confidence," Kotaite told a civil aviation directors conference in Montreal. "You will be better able to stand united against those who compromise aviation safety... In this battle, you are all allies on the side of safety."

Perhaps not surprisingly, several South American and African countries are opposed to the ICAO's move -- saying such information may be "manipulated with evil intentions" by foreign competitors, or "misinterpreted" by travelers.

Kotaite responds that despite the fact 2003 and 2004 were the safest years for air travel since the creation of ICAO in 1944, 2005 was marred by six major accidents -- including mass-casualty accidents in Venezuela, Equatorial Guinea, Indonesia, and two in Nigeria.

Most of those accidents were caused by "lack of necessary human, technical or financial resources," said Kotaite.

FMI: www.icao.int