Aerospace Diary

Neelam Mathews Oct 1, 2011 Last week, a senior official associated with the EU Climate Action office, when asked about the EU-Emission Trading Scheme (ETS) meet organized by India for non-EU ICAO Council members for a joint action-plan on the levy to be imposed from Jan 1, 2012, said dismissingly: “If they don’t  want to pay, they should keep off European airspace. What is the need for the Joint Declaration?” That, to most of us on the fringes reporting on this subject, sums it all. The arrogant, narcissistic and high-handed unflinching attitude of EU towards the rest of the world, cannot be overlooked. With Jan 2012 around the corner, the economically frail EU that took on obligations by signing the Kyoto Protocol, is starting to get the bubbly out as it celebrates its victory in anticipation of collecting a levy that nobody knows where the money will be directed to. Today, every carrier has filed its emission report to the EU, though many under protest. This brings one to ...

Posted by- Neelam Mathews Sept 30, 2011 An international meeting of International Civil Aviation Organization (ICAO) Council and other non-EU Member States was held in New Delhi on 29th -30th September to discuss the inclusion of aviation in the European Union Emission Trading System (EU-ETS). The meeting was chaired by Dr. Nasim Zaidi, Secretary, M/o Civil Aviation. A detailed agenda was deliberated upon including discussions on the legal objections to EU-ETS, policy objections, the role of ICAO- the way forward and discussions on next steps. The countries present were: Argentine Republic, Brazil, Canada, China, Chile, Colombia, Cuba, Egypt, Japan, Republic of Korea, Malaysia, Mexico, Nigeria, Paraguay, Peru, Philippines, Qatar, Russian Federation, Saudi Arabia, Singapore, South Africa, Thailand, Turkey, United Arab Emirates and United States of America. It was attended by over 70 delegates. There was wide concern expressed by all countries present, without exception, that the un...

Neelam Mathews Sept 29, 2011 The proposed inclusion of international aviation in the EU Emissions Trading Scheme without consent of governments, has led to a growing barrage of  objections. At the same time governments have expressed their objection to the EU-ETS being imposed unilaterally by the EU, in breach of the international treaty obligations and bilateral agreements. As the DGCA-led two-day conference on the EU-ETS starts today in New Delhi, the world is expecting fireworks to begin. Almost all the (Non-EU) ICAO Council members have expressed their open and unambiuous support to India's initiative to convene the meeting to devise a strategy to counter EU-ETS which starts on Jan 1, 2012.  The non-EU ICAO council member states, which include top 25 economies based on Revenue Ton Per Kilometer, will be meeting in a closed-door session, to strategize what retailiatory steps (read economic measures) they could undertake, on individual and collective bas...

Neelam Mathews July 14, 2011 A delegation of Star Alliance headed by CEO Jaan Albrecht will hold discussions with the ministry of civil aviation on July 18 as a prelude to Air India joining the alliance, Chairman and Managing Director Arvind Jadhav said when queried by Aerospace Diary. The meeting is expected to review all aspects of fulfillment of Star requirements by Air India and to confirm the date of the joining. “The meeting will be to exchange views because Air India will be joining the alliance,” MOCA secretary Nasim Zaidi told Aerospace Diary. Asked whether there was any credence to speculation that Air India might withdraw its commitment to join Star, Zaidi said: “No.”

March 17, 2011 Neelam Mathews NEW DELHI- As the European Union Emissions Trading Scheme (EU-ETS) deadline for 2012 approaches, UK companies are offering India products and services related to the trading of emission reduction credits  and investing in greenhouse gas abatement projects. As of 2012, all flights arriving at or departing from airports within the EU will be subject to the ETS. This means that by 2020 the CO 2 emissions of those flights are to be reduced by at least 20% of their 1990 levels. Airlines around the world are grappling to come to terms with this new challenge. “We are concerned about the ETS. This concern is felt not just by India but by the entire block of developing countries. We would like to be guided by the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change ( UNFCCC )…” said Nasim Zaidi, Secretary, Ministry of Civil Aviation at the UK-India Aviation Meet held here. “We would like to be guided by a global approach of ICAO,” added Zaidi. H...

News AWIN First Jan 10 , 2011 Neelam Mathews NEW DELHI India and the U.S. are now soon expected to sign a Bilateral Aviation Safety Agreement (BASA), civil aviation Secretary Nasim Zaidi tells Aviation Week. “The BASA timeframe is going through a procedure. The Executive Agreement will have to get India’s Cabinet clearance, which is no issue. Next is the implementation procedure for airworthiness agreement, which the FAA has to set the time frame for. The final signing is expected in April/May,” says Zaidi. An initial step was FAA’s technical assessment report—now a completed document—which established the competency of the Directorate General of Civil Aviation and the existence of an aircraft certification system able to produce results equivalent to the U.S. system. Following this, the FAA recommended to the Department of State that they initiate negotiations for the agreement. “BASA will be a great step forward in the aerospace i...