Graham Lake, director general of Canso (the Civil Air Navigation Services Organisation) says over capacity can be avoided in the Middle East at a keynote address as the Doha Aviation Summit.
“Yes, we can avoid it (a capacity crunch) but we have to work on it now,” said Lake, even though more than 400 new aircraft will be delivered to airlines in the Gulf, he added.
Canso has brokered the Red Sea Declaration, which is a seven-point plan aimed at improving the use of airspace over the Middle East. Airspace congestion is a critical issue for airlines in the region and one that Qatar Airways has been aware of for some time. Increasingly the efficiency of air traffic management across the Middle East is essential however this is a “hugely complex picture” said Lake, “because it involves a wide range of players, from the airlines and air traffic control to governments.”