The International Business Aviation Council (IBAC) has developed a public health risk-management workshop to support efforts by the International Civil Aviation Organization (ICAO) to provide guidance that would support a return of international flights. The ICAO Public Health Corridor (PHC) workshop is part of a broader virtual implementation package (iPack) that ICAO has launched online. Developed for national authorities, the PHC iPack training is designed to facilitate the reopening of cross-border air travel.
“This is an opportunity for industry to advise regulators and policymakers around the world on how best to facilitate the maintenance and return of air transport in a safe, efficient manner in line with agreed public-health and operational guidance,” said IBAC director-general, Kurt Edwards. “We coordinated subject matter experts from nearly 20 travel-related businesses and associations to gather their input for the workshop content.”
IBAC worked with Vancouver-based TrainingPort and MedAire to develop the workshop curriculum. “This new training curriculum will empower states to safely reopen borders after careful risk assessments and will undoubtedly contribute to the rebound of aviation on a global scale,” said Dr. Paulo M. Alves, MedAire’s global director of aviation health.
“It was an honor to work with numerous relevant industry subject matter experts to design and produce such important content, and to collectively work toward getting the world traveling safely again,” added TrainingPort CEO Bryan Barratt.
IBAC is a partner of ICAO’s Collaborative Arrangement for the Prevention and Management of Public Health Events in Civil Aviation (CAPSCA) cross-sectoral collaborative program, which is supported by the World Health Organization (WHO). In addition to ICAO, WHO, and IBAC, CAPSCA includes representatives of the airlines, manufacturers, air navigation services providers, airports, aviation authorities, and national public-health authorities.
“We’re grateful for IBAC’s efforts to assemble this team and deliver results which will make important contributions to global air transport recovery,” said ICAO secretary-general Juan Carlos Salazar. “The civil aviation community is working very closely through ICAO today to reconnect our world, and we’re committed to bringing stakeholders together to assure that our sector’s recovery proceeds safely, securely, and sustainably.”
