The Civil Aeronautics Administration (CAA) yesterday said Taiwan had officially become a member of the Civil Air Navigation Services Organisation (CANSO), which civil aviation officials see as an important breakthrough for Taiwan following years of failed attempts to join the UN’s International Civil Aviation Organization (ICAO).
Jean Shen (沈啟), director of CAA’s Air Navigation and Weather Services, said the Amsterdam-based CANSO was founded in 1996 and is one of the most influential international organizations in the global aviation industry, along with the Airports Council International (ACI) and the International Air Transport Association (IATA), she said.
CANSO is an official observer of the ICAO and has an office at ICAO headquarters in Montreal, she said. It has 58 members accounting for 85 percent of global air traffic, she said.
“Only states can become ICAO members, so CANSO as an organization can only be an observer,” Shen said. “Joining CANSO could help us understand the rationale behind adjustments in aviation practices issued by ICAO so that our aviation regulations can be better synchronized with those of the international community.”
Shen said Taiwan had joined CANSO under the name “Air Navigation and Weather Services, CAA,” adding that the organization did not have specific regulations regarding the names under which members can join.
China is not a member of CANSO, she said.
Although CANSO had extended invitations to Taiwan to join in the past, Taiwanese authorities were not willing to pay the NT$1 million (US$34,400) fee, Shen said.
Joining CANSO was important, she said, as the nation’s Taipei Flight Information Region (FIR) connects with Fukuoka FIR, Hong Kong FIR as well as Manila FIR and handles 1 million landings and departures every year.
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