A mock-up of Iata’s controversial New Distribution Capability (NDC) will be exhibited at the association’s 69th agm and World Air Transport Summit in Cape Town next week.
This will be the first demonstration of what the NDC may look like in future and will “open many people’s eyes to what it will be able to do”, Iata dg and ceo, Tony Tyler, told a media briefing in Cape Town yesterday. He said the new Internet -based distribution standard was entering the piloting stage this year.
Some 700 aviation leaders and 200 media representatives will attend the event, to be opened by Deputy President Kgalema Motlanthe and Public Enterprises Minister, Malusi Gigaba. The atmosphere is to be “cautiously optimistic” amidst modest signs of improvements in the industry’s fortunes. Iata’s global passenger traffic results for April announced yesterday show a 3,2% increase in demand over April last year, led by growth in emerging markets, but a 3% decline from March, blamed on the timing of this year’s Easter holidays.
African air traffic performed second best after the Middle East (10,9%), with 4,7% growth compared to April 2012. Capacity was up 3,3%, resulting in Africa being the only region to experience higher load factors (0,9% to 67,8%).
On Monday Iata will announce its revised industry outlook following its previous global industry forecast for a 1,6% margin (US$10,6bn profits on US$671bn in revenues).
Key issues to be discussed include:
• Safety: Africa is on the cusp of making great progress as neither Iata’s 20 sub-Saharan member airlines nor the 24 carriers that have met the Iata Operating Safety Audit recorded Western-built jet accidents last year. As IOSA becomes mandatory, thanks to African governments’ Abuja Declaration on safety earlier this year, Tony is “absolutely convinced this will lift the industry here in Africa”.
• Environment: Airlines will seek an agreement on how to share the financial burden of carbon-neutral growth from 2020.
• Passenger Rights: Airlines will look for industry solutions to the expanding patchwork of overlapping and often conflicting passenger rights regulations among states.
