Alexandre de Juniac, director general of the International Air Transport Association, called on UK and EU to find a solution that brings certainty to airlines planning growth to meet travel demand. Victor Besa / The National.
Alexandre de Juniac, director general of the International Air Transport Association, called on UK and EU to find a solution that brings certainty to airlines planning growth to meet travel demand. Victor Besa / The National.
Alexandre de Juniac, director general of the International Air Transport Association, called on UK and EU to find a solution that brings certainty to airlines planning growth to meet travel demand. Victor Besa / The National.
Alexandre de Juniac, director general of the International Air Transport Association, called on UK and EU to find a solution that brings certainty to airlines planning growth to meet travel demand. Vi

IATA fears no-deal Brexit measures cannot prevent flight disruptions


Deena Kamel
  • English
  • Arabic

The International Air Transport Association is worried that a contingency plan allowing flights between the UK and European Union in a no-deal Brexit scenario may still not prevent some flight disruptions, its chief said.

Measures to continue operating UK-EU flights for a year based on traffic levels of 2018 do not take into account additional growth in 2019, Alexandre de Juniac, Iata's director general, said on Thursday. Therefore, under the current measures for a no-deal scenario, flights must be adjusted once traffic exceeds the 2018 levels.

“If we have growth in 2019, then what will happen? Flights above the level of 2018 will have to be reduced, cancelled, delayed if they don’t reach an agreement,” he said. “I hope we can influence and tell the UK and European authorities to be more flexible.”

With just less than three months before Britain is set to leave the EU on March 29, UK Prime Minister Theresa May’s Brexit deal is being debated in parliament ahead of a vote in the coming days. The European Commission earlier said it would take measures to avoid “full interruption” of air traffic between the UK and EU in a no-deal case to ensure basic connectivity. It adopted a proposal for regulation to ensure 12 months of air services between the UK and EU and the validity of aviation safety licenses for 9 months, according to its December 19 statement. 

“We are a bit worried because the first guidelines that have been issued, I think represent a constraint on the traffic,” Mr de Juniac said. 

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There is a need to “calibrate” the number of flights allowed between the UK and EU to avoid “serious constraints” on the traffic between them in the weeks and months after Britain leaves the bloc, he said.

Iata does not expect flights to be grounded immediately if the UK and EU fail to reach a divorce agreement ahead of March 29.

Mr de Juniac said the spread of protectionist policies in 2019 is the key challenge facing the aviation industry overall.

Escalating trade tensions did not have a significant affect on air cargo flows so far, Mr de Juniac said.

Iata expects global air freight volumes to grow 3.7 per cent in 2019 but the outlook is at risk from protectionist trade measures, Iata said in its monthly report on Wednesday.

Global passenger traffic is forecast to grow 6 per cent this year but the Middle East is expected to perform “a bit below” that level because of ongoing political turmoil and regional carriers reaching normalised growth after years of massive expansion, Mr de Juniac said.

“The development of Middle East airlines has been very, very fast during the 2000s until 2014, but at a certain stage it reaches a cruise rhythm, a normal rhythm, so it’s not at all surprising now the region has come back to the average,” he said. “You also have competition from super-connectors in other parts of the world.”

Rising oil prices, currency volatility and intensifying competition dented earnings at the Gulf airlines last year.

Following a series of cyber-attacks on airlines’ systems last year, Iata is also setting up an industry committee in June to deal with physical and cyber security threats, Mr de Juniac said.

A sophisticated hack on systems of Hong Kong’s Cathay Pacific last year exposed the personal data of 9.4 million passengers in the world’s biggest airline data breach.

Mr de Juniac was speaking in Dubai following a tour of the region where he urged governments to “co-operate more” on policies affecting the Middle East aviation industry. 

2019 ASIA CUP POTS

Pot 1
UAE, Iran, Australia, Japan, South Korea, Saudi Arabia

Pot 2
China, Syria, Uzbekistan, Iraq, Qatar, Thailand

Pot 3
Kyrgyzstan, Lebanon, Palestine, Oman, India, Vietnam

Pot 4
North Korea, Philippines, Bahrain, Jordan, Yemen, Turkmenistan

The biog

Family: Parents and four sisters

Education: Bachelor’s degree in business management and marketing at American University of Sharjah

A self-confessed foodie, she enjoys trying out new cuisines, her current favourite is the poke superfood bowls

Likes reading: autobiographies and fiction

Favourite holiday destination: Italy

Posts information about challenges, events, runs in other emirates on the group's Instagram account @Anagowrunning

Has created a database of Emirati and GCC sportspeople on Instagram @abeermk, highlight: Athletes

Apart from training, also talks to women about nutrition, healthy lifestyle, diabetes, cholesterol, blood pressure

How to watch Ireland v Pakistan in UAE

When: The one-off Test starts on Friday, May 11
What time: Each day’s play is scheduled to start at 2pm UAE time.
TV: The match will be broadcast on OSN Sports Cricket HD. Subscribers to the channel can also stream the action live on OSN Play.

Company profile

Name: GiftBag.ae

Based: Dubai

Founded: 2011

Number of employees: 4

Sector: E-commerce

Funding: Self-funded to date

UAE currency: the story behind the money in your pockets
MATCH INFO

Uefa Champions League, semi-final result:

Liverpool 4-0 Barcelona

Liverpool win 4-3 on aggregate

Champions Legaue final: June 1, Madrid

WOMAN AND CHILD

Director: Saeed Roustaee

Starring: Parinaz Izadyar, Payman Maadi

Rating: 4/5

Pros%20and%20cons%20of%20BNPL
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UAE currency: the story behind the money in your pockets

Director: Laxman Utekar

Cast: Vicky Kaushal, Akshaye Khanna, Diana Penty, Vineet Kumar Singh, Rashmika Mandanna

Rating: 1/5

UAE currency: the story behind the money in your pockets
The%20specs
%3Cp%3E%3Cstrong%3EPowertrain%3A%20%3C%2Fstrong%3ESingle%20electric%20motor%0D%3Cbr%3E%3Cstrong%3EPower%3A%20%3C%2Fstrong%3E201hp%0D%3Cbr%3E%3Cstrong%3ETorque%3A%20%3C%2Fstrong%3E310Nm%0D%3Cbr%3E%3Cstrong%3ETransmission%3A%20%3C%2Fstrong%3ESingle-speed%20auto%0D%3Cbr%3E%3Cstrong%3EBattery%3A%20%3C%2Fstrong%3E53kWh%20lithium-ion%20battery%20pack%20(GS%20base%20model)%3B%2070kWh%20battery%20pack%20(GF)%0D%3Cbr%3E%3Cstrong%3ETouring%20range%3A%20%3C%2Fstrong%3E350km%20(GS)%3B%20480km%20(GF)%0D%3Cbr%3E%3Cstrong%3EPrice%3A%20%3C%2Fstrong%3EFrom%20Dh129%2C900%20(GS)%3B%20Dh149%2C000%20(GF)%0D%3Cbr%3E%3Cstrong%3EOn%20sale%3A%3C%2Fstrong%3E%20Now%3C%2Fp%3E%0A
Cricket World Cup League 2

UAE squad

Rahul Chopra (captain), Aayan Afzal Khan, Ali Naseer, Aryansh Sharma, Basil Hameed, Dhruv Parashar, Junaid Siddique, Muhammad Farooq, Muhammad Jawadullah, Muhammad Waseem, Omid Rahman, Rahul Bhatia, Tanish Suri, Vishnu Sukumaran, Vriitya Aravind

Fixtures

Friday, November 1 – Oman v UAE
Sunday, November 3 – UAE v Netherlands
Thursday, November 7 – UAE v Oman
Saturday, November 9 – Netherlands v UAE

Company Profile:

Name: The Protein Bakeshop

Date of start: 2013

Founders: Rashi Chowdhary and Saad Umerani

Based: Dubai

Size, number of employees: 12

Funding/investors:  $400,000 (2018) 

Company%C2%A0profile
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Traits of Chinese zodiac animals

Tiger:independent, successful, volatile
Rat:witty, creative, charming
Ox:diligent, perseverent, conservative
Rabbit:gracious, considerate, sensitive
Dragon:prosperous, brave, rash
Snake:calm, thoughtful, stubborn
Horse:faithful, energetic, carefree
Sheep:easy-going, peacemaker, curious
Monkey:family-orientated, clever, playful
Rooster:honest, confident, pompous
Dog:loyal, kind, perfectionist
Boar:loving, tolerant, indulgent   

Company%20profile
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