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Taking commercial aviation to the next level
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Anil Jayasinghe |
By Raisa Wickrematunge
I am
watching a presentation ceremony at Skyline Aviation, a
flight training academy. There is much jollity and
snapping of photos as the students go up to take their
certificates. Two of these students, however, are no
strangers to aviation. They are Captain Anil Jayasinghe
and Captain Chira Fernando, who have just completed a
flight instructor training course.
These
two individuals are passionate about civil aviation, as
were the other professionals I encountered at the
Skyline Aviation Academy. Yet it is felt by some that
the industry needs more room to expand, and as such,
they have offered their services to the Civil Aviation
Authority of Sri Lanka (CAASL), the regulatory body for
civil aviation.
In a
report to the Chairman, CAASL, Lal Liyanarachchi,
Captains Anil Jayasinghe, Gihan Fernando and Chira
Fernando are offering their expertise to try and revive
the industry. Currently, the report says that there are
only two surviving flight schools in Sri Lanka, with two
aircraft each. There are also two hot air balloons and
two twin engine aircraft, and this comprises the entire
equipment for civil aviation.
In the air force
All
three pilots served in the air force before moving to
work as airline pilots, or airline instructors. Their
experience when combined is considerable and varied.
Captain Chira Fernando is offering his services in
flight training, and aviation facilities. Captain Gihan
Fernando would like to represent the Sri Lankan
Aeronautical Society, which will be formed using the
principles of the Royal Aeronautical Society of England.
It
aims to target students in schools and universities to
ensure that more of the younger generation would get
into civil aviation. Captain Anil Jayasinghe meanwhile
is interested in assisting with the organisation of
aviation events, including balloon, airship, and glider
operations and operation of other
recreational/experimental aircraft.
Executive Director, Skyline Aviation, Romesh Fernando
noted that the civil aviation industry had a lot of
potential for growth. “There is so much potential to
develop civil aviation, it could really bring in money.
After training, individuals would be looking to earn
anywhere between Rs. 350,000 to Rs. 1 and a half million
per month. It should be seen as a lucrative career.”
Yet
Fernando said it was a “challenge to survive” with all
the red tape imposed. He mentioned the restriction on
imports of aircraft meant for civil aviation purposes,
not to mention the amount of paperwork involved to
obtain spare parts. The Sri Lanka Air Force (SLAF) said
that the measures were necessary due to the security
situation in the country. “Of course, with the civil
war, it is understandable that there would be increased
security measures, but smart decisions should be made to
ensure control which would safeguard, not cripple the
industry,” Fernando said.
Limited training
Captain Chira Fernando lamented the limited training
area available to trainees, and the lack of resources in
terms of aircraft. Despite only having four aircraft
available at the flight schools, Chira Fernando said the
SLAF thought the air space was “too crowded,” and as
such they were blocking the import of other aircraft.
He
also commented on the ‘Ruhuna Open Skies’ programme.
This programme was an ambitious project in which all
aircraft would be permitted to fly within a designated
area. However Chira Fernando said that there were three
airfields within this project, all controlled by the
SLAF, and access to the airfields were restricted. As
such, he said, the project, “couldn’t really be called
‘open skies’ as the gates are closed.”
His
brother, Captain Gihan Fernando spoke of how these days,
anything could be turned into a weapon of destruction.
“Nowadays, terrorism is associated even with model
aircraft flying,” Fernando said. He said that this
situation was a sad state of affairs because children
weren’t being given the opportunity to get interested in
flying. A demonstration in Katukurundu had faced
opposition, even though the models would have been flown
inside a hall. A planned light aircraft display in the
Maharagama Youth Centre had had a similar reaction from
security forces.
Tough procedures
Meanwhile, Anil Jayasinghe said that although the
situation with regards to the industry was a lot better,
procedures were still too harsh. He added that although
it was understandable the military should get involved
with civil aviation, international guidelines should be
followed. He added that some of the security measures
taken were completely unnecessary, the newest one being
that all the planes at Katukurunda were to be chained,
and the batteries removed, to ensure they weren’t being
used at night-time.
“Have
these measures prevented any attacks,” Jayasinghe asked.
He added that with the war coming to an end, military
personnel would find it difficult to get jobs in the
civil industry, due to the lack of resources and support
after 1994, when the SLAF first identified an aerial
threat.
Wing
Commander Sunil Cabraal said that the Ruhuna Open Skies
project was currently inactive. “We are holding back
because of the current security situation. We have by no
means given up on the project. Soon everything from
kites to aircraft will be able to fly in the area, which
we chose because of its good terrain.”
He
added that there was a ban on imports of aircraft, but
added that “things should change soon,” once the
security situation improved. Cabraal denied that the
SLAF was banning import of aircraft due to “airspace
congestion.” Commenting on the ban on model aircraft, he
said, “These days, you can scare a man with anything.”
While
everyone seemed optimistic about the future of aviation,
it seems evident that more coordination between civil
and military aviation personnel is necessary in order to
ensure a balance..
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Excerpts of an interview with Director General,
Civil Aviation Authority of Sri Lanka (CAASL), Lal
Liyanarachchi
Q: Why was the Civil Aviation Authority of Sri Lanka
(CAASL) formed from the Civil Aviation Department
(CAD)? What were the notable changes made?
A: The Civil Aviation Department was a pretty
old model of administrative structure. And civil
aviation is a huge commercial activity. The
department framework is not flexible enough to
address all the issues in a highly developing
sophisticated industry. It was a British model of
department, and no one really looked at improving it
after it was implemented.
Until 1997, when I took over there was no motivation
to change. In 1997 I took over as Director General
and there was an audit conducted by the
International Civil Aviation Organisation (ICAO), an
international body that monitors civil air
operations of all member states of ICAO. Sri Lanka
is now a member state of ICAO, the function of which
is to formulate or harmonise operations of all air
services around the globe. They regulate operating
procedures according to certain standards. Now
Sri Lanka
can’t violate those standards because it has
ratified them, at the international Chicago
Convention.
It
is a huge document, the principles of which every
member state has to follow. In short, it promotes
friendship and coordination between members, without
compromising safety and security. In short, the
change brought about by the restructure of CAD made
it possible to be in line with the rest of the
world.
Q: What is the responsibility of the CAASL?
A: We are a regulatory body. As such we don’t
operate airlines. However every operator or service
provider must have a license from CAASL, to ensure
whoever runs the airline meets with international
operating standards. Aviation cannot be considered a
local industry. It is an international industry and
as such the CAASL has to keep in line with
international standards, particularly safety
standards. We have to update our regulations to keep
in line with these standards. If we don’t maintain
this, even if it is expensive, our national carrier
SriLankan Airlines wouldn’t be able to go to Europe
for example, since we aren’t operating to meet their
standards.
Similarly their airlines can say Sri Lanka doesn’t
meet the safety standards, so we are unable to fly
there. So every operator/service provider, even
support services like catering, must comply with
regulations. The director general is the supervisor
entrusted to look at everyone’s operations. Meeting
these requirements is not easy, especially because
in order to monitor operations, there is a need for
qualified personnel.
Q: How successful do you think CAASL has been in
fulfilling the vision (prime growth for the national
economy) and aims of the organisation?
A: We are doing ok. However, we are a
regulating body and to achieve these things you must
have the proper mechanism in place. We need the
correct legislative framework, and that’s where the
problem is. There is a bill currently before
parliament, the Civil Aviation Bill, and we expect
that to go through. This is not only to ensure that
operators and service providers comply with
operating requirements. Most of those regulations
are connected with the safety aspects, but there is
also some focus on economic aspects/viability of
projects.
The Director General should be provided with legal
support to function. The Civil Aviation Bill is not
passed as yet, but should be taken up very soon.
This is to strengthen the regulatory powers of the
Director General of CAASL. This can’t be delegated
to anybody else. It has to be ready when auditors
come, and the regulations must be in place. There
needs to be legal validity, unlike other industries.
In
addition, it needs to be implemented by qualified
staff. If Sri Lanka is found non compliant of
international standards by the ICAO, we’ll be
blacklisted, as a non complying country. That would
be disastrous for tourism, and for SriLankan
Airlines, as other countries would not want to work
with us.
Q: How active is the Ruhuna Open Skies project?
A: It’s active. It’s not being ignored, but
for the moment there are so many things that have to
be in place before Ruhuna Open Skies can be put into
effect. Gradually it’s happening, and with the end
of the war in sight, it should soon be developed.
Q: What do you think of the effectiveness of the
security measures implemented by the SLAF? Do you
think coordination between civil and military
personnel is important?
A: The defence authorities don’t have to
consult us. They can take decisions on the
information that they have. We have no way of
obstructing or influencing them. We are, however in
the process of implementing civil aviation policies
in our country. In the policy document, there is a
separate chapter set aside for civil-military
coordination because if the war ends there will be a
lot of people who have worked in the SLAF who may go
into civil aviation, providing they meet the
standards.
Military and civil aviation are, of course two
different disciplines. Just because one person
operated a military aircraft doesn’t mean he can
operate a civil aviation aircraft unless he meets
with the civil operating requirements. However we
consider military aviation as a good resource that
can help develop civil aviation.
When you only look at military requirements, this
will not help with the development of any commercial
aspect of civil industry. Civil industry has to have
a lot of investments coming in. Even operating
balloons is very expensive. Aircraft must be
operated frequently or they become obsolete. They
are expensive, and replacement cost is also high so
we must look at that aspect. The security measures
have affected our industry, but every other field is
also affected.
Q: Is there scope for growth in the industry?
A: We need more investments. There is a lot
more room for expansion of these facilities but to
do that the country must have some peace. In air
transport safety regulations have to be applied. The
industry can’t operate with unsafe surroundings
unlike any other business. So the government will
have to consider all these points if they want to
develop the civil aviation industry.
There is a lot of potential in the industry, there
are people who are willing to invest in this, but
for that you must create a good, safe and free
environment. So when the environment is ready, the
industry will automatically develop because we as
the regulators are getting ready with our regulatory
mechanism to help and support them. The industry can
be developed when the environment is safe. We are
thinking positively. We wish to see these things
develop. Safety is our number one priority. |
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