REMARKS BY H.E. EDWIN W. CARRINGTON, SECRETARY-GENERAL, CARIBBEAN COMMUNITY (CARICOM), ON THE OCCASION FO THE THIRD MEETING OF THE BOARD OF DIRECTORS OF THE CARIBBEAN AVIATION SAFETY AND SECURITY OVERSIGHT SYSTEM (CASSOS), 15 APRIL 2010, GEORGETOWN, GUYANA

Since we last met at the Secretariat’s Headquarters in February 2009 on the occasion of the formal launching of Caribbean Aviation Safety and Security Oversight System (CASSOS), our fledging Institution has suffered a tragic loss, the impact of which is still with us and will continue to be with us for some time. The devastating earthquake which struck Haiti at dusk on 12 January 2010 claimed the lives of stalwarts of the Caribbean Aviation Fraternity. Let us recall with utmost respect the contributions of:

• Rosemond James, Director General of the Eastern Caribbean Civil Aviation Authority, a prime mover in the formation of CASSOS; of its predecessor agency, the Regional Aviation Safety Oversight System (RASOS) and one of the first Directors of CASSOS;

• His colleague Gregory McAlpin, also of the Eastern Caribbean Civil Aviation Authority;

• Siegfried Francisco, the Director of Civil Aviation of Curaçao; and

• Auxencio Isenia also of the Directorate of Civil Aviation of Curacao.

Unfortunately, Siegfried Francisco is still unaccounted for at this time.

CASSOS owes much of its global recognition and respect to the contribution of your lost colleagues.

I take this opportunity to offer condolences on behalf of the entire Caribbean Community, the staff of the CARICOM Secretariat and my own behalf to the grieving families, relatives and friends of your departed colleagues and their respective agencies, the Eastern Caribbean Civil Aviation Authority, the Directorate of Civil Aviation of Curacao, as well as the Board of Directors of CASSOS.

Some of you here today were also in Haiti on that fatal day. The Community thanks you for your continued commitment to the advancement of regional aviation safety and security.

I am pleased to welcome the new members of the Board representing Jamaica, the Member States of the OECS and Suriname. As a Board, you are challenged to guide CASSOS in its primary activities and objectives of assisting its States Parties in meeting their obligations as Contracting States to the Chicago Convention (1944), and promoting the safety and security of civil aviation in the Region.

The relevance of this mandate has become even more compelling worldwide, following the tragic terrorist attacks of September 11, 2001. Further, the incident on Northwest Airlines flight 253 on December 25, 2009, involving an attempt to ignite plastic explosives on board the aircraft is a grim reminder of the continuing threat to the safety, security and efficient operation of civil aviation even eight years after the events of 9/11.

Our Region is not immune to threats to international civil aviation. The recent attempt to hijack an aircraft in Jamaica is a case in point. CARICOM Member States therefore need to be vigilant and continue to collaborate with one another and together with other States and agencies, such as the International Civil Aviation Organisation (ICAO), the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) and the Transportation Security Administration (TSA), in the implementation of enhanced safety and security measures in response to the continuing threats.

Quite apart from deliberate threats to aviation safety and security, CASSOS is tasked with supporting the investigation of aircraft accidents and incidents within this Region and to contributing to keeping these to a minimum. To cite a few examples:

• In April 2008, an Antonov An-28 operated by the Suriname carrier Blue Wing Airlines crashed in an attempted aborted landing at Benzdorp in the east of Suriname, near the border with French Guiana. All 17 passengers and 2 crewmembers perished;

• In October 2009, Blue Wing Airlines lost an Antonov 28 aircraft in Suriname and in December of the same year American Airlines lost a Boeing 737 aircraft in Jamaica – both due to accidents during the landing phase of flight. Fortunately, on these occasions, there were no fatalities. These accidents are still under investigation but they underscore the need for States to achieve and maintain full capacity to discharge their international obligations with respect to aviation safety oversight.

In this regard, CASSOS, as a regional Institution with juridical personality, has played and continues to play and will be expected to continue to play a major role in enabling CARICOM States to meet their obligations through the sharing of skilled aviation personnel, harmonization of standards, regulations and certification processes, joint training and, the provision of technical advice and other activities. These requirements are of extreme importance- critical to our very lives. The joint approach is obviously the most cost-effective way to address the Region’s aviation safety issues and is consistent with the policies of ICAO as well as with the provisions of the Revised Treaty of Chaguaramas, the instrument which creates our Caribbean Community.

Ladies and Gentlemen, we are now faced with two critical issues on the Community’s aviation agenda. One is the application by the United Kingdom Government, of an Air Passenger Duty (APD) that discriminates against air travelers from the United Kingdom to Caribbean destinations vis-à-vis travelers to further destinations in North America and beyond. It costs us more to travel from London to Antigua than from London to Hawaii. The Air Passenger Duty will hurt the Region’s tourism sector. We must leave no stone unturned to secure the removal of its discriminatory application.

The other issue is the vital lobbying this Region must undertake in support of the candidature of Trinidad and Tobago to the ICAO Council at elections due to take place during the ICAO Assembly in September/October of this year.

These two matters are being pursued by various Organs of the Community and CASSOS will no doubt be apprised as to the initiatives being undertaken and of the role it can play in these matters.

In closing, I wish to reaffirm the commitment of the Secretariat to support the work of the Board of CASSOS as it seeks to exploit the provisions of the CASSOS Agreement including the responsibility of the Council for Trade and Economic Development (COTED) to provide the Board with policy advice and support.

I wish you a successful meeting and invite you all to enjoy the facilities of the Secretariat. Notwithstanding your heavy agenda, I hope you will also find the time to venture beyond the Secretariat and your hotels and enjoy the warm hospitality of your aviation colleagues here and in the wider Guyanese community.