Iata claims to have brokered an agreement to open North Korean airspace to all carriers from December, producing annual savings to effected carriers of US$125 million through flight time savings.
The breakthrough comes after 18 months of talks between Iata and Pyongyang. But the scheme may yet face a major political hurdle as Seoul and Pyongyang continue their ongoing war of words. South Korea's foreign ministry refuses to accept Iata's assurances as North Korea's formal position. Seoul has resisted the opening of North Korean airspace in the past, as Pyongyang sought to exclude South Korean carriers, but sources at Iata now claim Pyongyang has relented. Seoul also wants a North-South aviation accord before cooperating on ATC.
Sources at Iata express 'surprise' at the South's pessimistic public reaction, and say that South Korean officials welcomed the accord at a private meeting in July.
Despite Seoul's reluctant attitude, Anthony Laven, Iata's Asian regional director infrastructure, is extremely confident the North will open its airspace as agreed and will meet the required standards by December. 'They will open their airspace to any international airlines and that includes operations by South Korean airlines,' he insists.
Iata technical experts are providing support for the upgrading of the North's ATC infrastructure. Laven says VHF equipment, ATC consoles and satellite communication links for voice and data transmission will be in place by December. Ground stations for handling Fans (Future Air Navigation Systems) aircraft would be installed by the second quarter of 1997.
Tom Ballantyne
Source: Airline Business
