European Aviation Safety Agency executive director Patrick Ky is hoping the agency will have new regulation in place within two years that will lay the foundation for a new standard performance-based approach, and a more harmonized way of governing aviation in Europe. Ky was among four speakers at the Opening General Session at EBACE yesterday morning, with the others being EBAA CEO Fabio Gamba, NBAA chairman Ron Duncan and Francois Longchamp, president of the Council of States of the Canton of Geneva. The participants held a ribbon-cutting ceremony to officially open the convention.

Ky, appearing at his second EBACE, told the audience that EASA is reviewing its activities throughout the agency as it enters its second decade. This has included outreach to member states and industry. The agency has heard concerns of the “heavy load imposed on industry” and said the agency is striving to lighten that load and become less prescriptive.

He pointed to the EASA formal Opinion on the upcoming revised Basic Regulation, for which an advance notice of proposed amendment was released earlier this year, saying it will represent a fundamental change on the part of both the agency and industry. He said that EASA hopes to establish performance targets and leave it up to the industry how it meets them.

Ky acknowledged this will not be possible in all areas, but EASA hopes to implement a performance-based approach to the greatest extent possible. “This is a complete change in the mindset of authorities,” he said, but also “a change in the mindset of industry.” Industry will need to accept more responsibility for its safety approach, Ky said, but he also noted that safety is in the “DNA” of the industry.

The Basic Regulation Opinion also seeks to better harmonize the implementation of rules across Europe. States have implemented aviation regulation differently, which creates problems creating a level playing field and results in unfair competitive advantages, he said. “We will try to achieve better harmonization. I think we have to get there. Otherwise, we will never have a truly European system.”

He also worries about the lack of resources devoted to aviation safety in some member states. Some states have agencies with 25 people, far too few to have proper oversight of airports, operator and aviation businesses, he said. EASA is starting to see operators register in countries that have less oversight, he said. The Basic Regulation would permit these states to call upon EASA to help with oversight.

EBACE’s Geneva Home

Longchamp, meanwhile, stressed to attendees that Geneva officials recognize the importance of EBACE and access of business aviation in Geneva. But he encouraged business aviation operators to do their part to curb emissions and noise. Political pressure has been increasing from residents who object to growth in aircraft operations, he warned. “Business aviation will soon be in the center of the political debate,” he said.

Business aviation has been working to ensure that environmental standards are viewed and managed globally by the International Civil Aviation Organization, said NBAA’s Duncan. He added business aviation groups are working collectively to ensure that the sector is better understood as policies, such as environmental regulations, are implemented. Along with environmental regulation, Duncan pointed to a recent working paper outlining conditions that would permit business aviation flights to be eligible for temporary admission to European states, relieving them from certain taxes and levies.

Gamba also reiterated the need for the industry to be better understood, expressing concern about access and other regulations in Europe.

Along with the opening general session, EBACE was hosting a luncheon in honor of the four individuals who laid the foundation for EBACE: former NBAA senior officials Kathleen Blouin and Jack Olcott, along with EBAA’s Brian Humphries and Fernand Francois.