Oman Air has hosted a major meeting of the (GFSC) which was held at the Golden Tulip Hotel, Muscat.
The event was well-attended by representatives from the Public Authority for Civil Aviation (PACA), the Royal Oman Police, the Royal Air Force of Oman and Oman Airports Management Company (OAMC). Airlines from the region, including Emirates Airline, Etihad Airways, Qatar Airways, Saudi Airlines, IndiGo, Fly Dubai and Amiri Flight, of Qatar, also played an important role in the proceedings. In addition, Aviation organizations such as Dubai Air Navigation Services (DANS) and Nexus participated fully.
Delegates heard about a range of general issues and incidents relevant to regional carriers. Speakers also gave presentations on the ‘Wake Turbulence Severity Classification Trial at Dubai’, and ‘Drones: their risk to aviation, the future and what the legislators are doing’.
Captain Waheed Al Subhi, Senior Manager, Safety and Emergency Response Planning, welcomed the distinguish guests on behalf of Oman Air’s Chairman and Chief Executive Officer. He stated:
“At Oman Air, safety is our core business function. Safety has been, and will always remain, the first priority in all our activities. We are committed to conducting our business in a manner that ensures the safety of our customers, employees, the general public, external contractors, agents and associated organizations.
“Furthermore, Oman Air constantly strives to develop, implement, maintain and improve all our strategies and processes. This ensures that, by utilizing our safety management systems, all our aviation activities achieve the highest level of safety performance, and fully meet national and international standards”
Concluding the meeting, Co-chairman Captain William Mermelstein extended his thanks to Oman Air for its hospitality, and for hosting the GFSC in Muscat.
The Gulf Flight Safety Council was originally founded in Oman in 2004 by a group of safety professionals from various aviation companies located within the GCC region. Currently this group is made up of over 300 members representing more than 80 organizations within the region. The group meets three times a year to promote safety initiatives, including coordination with international organizations and bodies such as ICAO and IATA.
The day before the GFSC meeting, the inaugural meetings of the Gulf Cabin Safety Group (GCSG) and the Gulf Flight Ops Safety Group (GFLOPSG) were held. Inclusion of GCSG and GFLOPSG as sub groups of the GFSC enables members to share best practice and experiences in promoting and enhancing flight safety in the region.
