Commercial aviation is the biggest impediment to business aviation’s growth in Asia, according to Tay Tiang Guan, deputy director general of the Civil Aviation Authority of Singapore (CAAS). Speaking at the ABACE show conference session on March 27, Tay admitted that the rapid growth of the commercial aviation sector is taking the lion’s share of regulators’ attention and dominating airspace. He also said the corporate sector needs separate rulings and dedicated staff in order to develop at a reasonable pace.

Consequently, CAAS and other Asian regulators are calling for a common industry standard to help develop the market throughout the region. Representatives from three of the region’s most influential aviation authorities converged in Shanghai to debate regional policy-making. Tay, together with Xia Xinghua, Civil Aviation Administration of China (CAAC) Deputy Administrator; Yukiyoshi Noguchi, principal Deputy Director of the aviation strategy division of the Japanese Civil Aviation Bureau (JCAB); and Don Spruston, Director General of the International Business Aviation Council (IBAC), came together in a panel moderated by John Porcari, U.S. Deputy Secretary of Transportation.

“Although it is fantastic to see several new smaller airports springing up, it is important that they are not [doing so] at the expense of allowing business aviation operators access to the larger international airfields,” said Porcari. “We encourage the development of these regional satellite airports, but we don’t want to see discrimination at large airports, and we need to keep a reasonable level of accessibility at larger hubs.”

“We can help with creating policies, such as on safety and security, as well as environmental and air traffic procedures,” said Spruston. “We are currently formulating policies to help develop the industry.” According to Xia, Chinese authorities now attach “great importance” to the business aviation sector. “We are working hard to regulate nine business aviation operators,” he said. “We have a shortage of management capabilities, so we have entrusted large commercial operators to help us manage business jets and their operation to ensure safety.”