IATA Flags Urgent Need To Safeguard Civil Aviation Amid Rising Conflict Zone Threats

The International Air Transport Association (IATA) flagged the need to save and secure civil aircraft and airports in the situations of war and escalated tensions in conflict zones. The association highlighted that two civil aircraft were downed and airports were bombed in conflict zones in the last 12 months.

On Monday, the director general of IATA Willie Walsh announced updates to the association’s industry financial outlook at the 81st annual general meeting hosted at Bharat Mandapam in New Delhi. The outlook showed improved profitability over 2024 and resilience in the face of global economic and political shifts. According to IATA, the traveler numbers will top five billion annually very soon. While it forecasts that airlines will make a $36 billion profit on revenues of $979 billion in 2025, it stated that the amount equates to a net margin of a mere 3.7%, which is $7.20 net profit per passenger.

During the AGM, concerns were raised about the loss beared by the aviation industry due to heightened tensions in conflict zones. IATA highlighted that two civil aircraft were downed in conflict zones in the last 12 months while several airports with civilian aircraft on the ground were bombed in military operations. It also reported incidents of interference with navigation systems near conflicts rose sharply in the same time period.

IATA said that it has made its view very clear to the United Nations Security Council about the safety of civil aviation in conflict zones and has asked it to highlight the governments to responsibly ensure that civil aviation is never the target of military operations, even inadvertently. It also said that it expects UN’s International Civil Aviation Organization (ICAO) to address the issue in its forthcoming assembly in Montreal later this year.

Replying to The Free Press Journal’s question, Walsh said, “It's unacceptable for civil aviation to be put at risk as a result of disputes and conflicts around the world. So it's very important that governments recognize their obligations and their responsibilities to ensure that civil aviation is not at risk either as a result of inadvertent activity or because of decisions that have been taken to target surfing airports.

Marie Owen’s Thomsen, chief economist at IATA, said, “As soon as we have fragmentation, which comes naturally with conflict, we impair the whole global air transportation network and the negative effects are spread across the globe. You also get associated questions related to the airspace and therefore today we have less available airspace than we used to have. Also this airspace cannot be used on equal terms by all airlines. So we get a skewed competitive environment and that's obviously, you know, not what we would like to see.”

IATA highlighted that the most effective way to ensure safety of civil aircraft and airports is by sharing information. It stated that the imminent adoption of security management systems into the Chicago Convention’s Annex 17 adds strength to this obligation.