On June 19, 2020, CAAC Chief Pilot Wan Xiangdong and a Chinese delegation attended the Second COVID-19 Information Sharing Teleconference of APAC CAA Director Generals. During the conference, CAA Director Generals from APAC countries were briefed on the CART (Council Aviation Recovery Task Force) Report and the guidance on global air travel during the COVID-19 outbreak, ICAO’s analysis on the economic impact of COVID-19 on civil aviation around the world, and the progress of work by APAC COVID-19 Contingency and Recovery Planning Group (ACCRPG). Representatives from CAAs of Australia, South Korea, Japan, Malaysia, Singapore, Bangladesh, and Nepal, as well as from international organizations such as ICAO, IATA, ACI, CANSO and EASA attended the conference.

In the opening remarks, ICAO Secretary General Liu Fang noted that COVID-19 brought huge challenges to the aviation industry, and expressed her appreciation for the APAC Regional Office for its efforts to coordinate the adoption of effective measures by all parties to push forward the recovery of the industry. She encouraged all parties to participate in CAPSCA and relevant mechanisms to make full use of ICAO’s resources and tools, to enhance epidemic prevention and control capabilities and jointly support the restart and recovery of the civil aviation industry. The APAC Regional Office introduced the work carried out by CART and elaborated on the key principles, types of measures, recommendations, the plan for restart and recovery, civil aviation resilience, future outlook, and the four modules, i.e. airports, aircraft, crew members andcargo services in the CART Report. ACCRPG reported on its overall working plan and the progress of three working groups, namely aviation safety group, public health group, and security and facilitation group. The Air Transport Bureau of ICAO briefed the participants on the economic impact of COVID-19 on civil aviation around the world, the online tools for monitoring the impact, and the financial relief and mitigation measures put in place around the world.

Participants unanimously appreciated the coordinating role played by ICAO and its endeavour to unite APAC CAAs to jointly tackle the challenges posed by COVID-19 to the civil aviation industry. Relevant countries and international organizations held discussions around topics such as financial relief measures, the CART Report, and guidance on global air travel during the COVID-19 outbreak.

Chief Pilot Wan Xiangdong expressed in his remarks that China has actively participated in the work of CART, and that China highly agreed with the 10 principles and recommendations in the CART Report. He called upon all parties to carefully observe the rules stipulated by WHO and ICAO regarding the COVID-19, and to adopt unified standards and practices. Wan noted that CAAC is willing to support the leading role of ICAO and to continue the exchanges and international cooperation with various countries to jointly promote the recovery and sustainable development of the civil aviation industry.

APAC Regional Director Arun Mishra expressed his gratitude to all parties for their support for the work of the APAC Office, and encouraged Member States to continue to share information, measures and best practices in a timely manner, so as to promote the restart and recovery of the civil aviation industry in the region as early as possible.