The Civil Aviation Authority of Singapore (CAAS) and the UK Civil Aviation Authority will collaborate on aviation safety, sustainability, training, innovation, and horizon scanning.
As the global aviation industry continues to recover from the impacts of the recent pandemic, international collaboration has become a key strategy for regulators to help cope with the return of demand and increasing air traffic. Singapore and the United Kingdom have recently announced their plans to collaborate in a variety of different areas in the industry, helping each respective country adapt to the post-COVID era of aviation.
The Civil Aviation Authority of Singapore (CAAS) and the UK Civil Aviation Authority (CAA) will begin collaborating further in the areas of aviation safety, sustainability, training, innovation, and horizon scanning to better position each country’s aviation sectors. The agreement was created and finalized at the second Singapore-UK Bilateral Aviation Steering Committee on March 27, 2023. This committee is co-chaired by Chief Executive Officer of the CAA, Richard Moriarty, and Director-General of the CAAS, Han Kok Juan. While originally set up in December 2020 in response to the COVID-19 pandemic, this committee seems to be supporting the countries following the peak of the health crisis.
To promote aviation safety, the two authorities will validate a variety of safety systems by conducting technical visits at various sites. Additionally, the countries will begin collaborating to develop mutual acceptance in airworthiness certificates. Achieving this could mean that approval issued by one of the organizations will be equivalent to approval by the other governing body. By standardizing some regulatory requirements, the two countries will be able to lower costs associated with regulating safety.
To better support training, both authorities signed a Supplemental Arrangement. Under this agreement, the training branch of the CAAS—the Singapore Aviation Academy (SAA)—will further collaborate with the UK’s technical assistance branch to cooperate in training by exchanging professionals in curriculum design, research, and management of training programs. The collaboration’s first step will be creating and hosting a seminar about cybersecurity for those involved with its implementation in either country.
To further support sustainable aviation, the CAAS and UK Civil Aviation Authority have signed a memorandum of understanding that will help make air travel more sustainable in both countries. This will mainly involve planning policies, regulations, and strategies for placing a larger emphasis on sustainable flight in the coming years.
Both Singapore and the UK aim to enhance the airport experience by collaborating to develop innovative solutions at existing travel hubs. The countries will share information and experience regarding the application of technology and research to redesign certain aspects of the airport experience for improved productivity. The countries will also work together on horizon scanning, mainly by identifying trends and opportunities along with potential threats within the industry.
Richard Moriarty of the UK Civil Aviation Authority showed enthusiasm for the collaboration, explaining that they’ll be able to work in “areas of common interest including safety, innovation, sustainability and training.”
“Preparing for the future, training collaboration will focus on equipping aviation professionals with the skills and capabilities to continue to support a safe and secure aviation system, including as the sector evolves to introduce new requirements, technologies and users.”