2009 China/U.S. Aviation Symposium

The 5th China-U.S. Aviation Forum kicked off on April 8th at the Grand Hyatt Beijing. Aviation officials from China and the United States, as well as nearly 300 representatives hailing from the civil aviation industry, aviation manufacturing and trade associations attended the forum.
Civil Aviation Administration of China (CAAC) Administrator Li Jiaxiang, Deputy Administrator Yang Guoqing, Deputy Administrator Wang Changshun and their American counterparts, officials from the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA), as well as those from the U.S. Trade and Development Agency (USTDA), were in attendance. Li addressed, “in response to the global financial crisis, CAAC quickly began to act on many fronts, including aviation safety, market order, growing capacity, infrastructure, fiscal policy and carbon emissions reduction. The reform measures have yielded results even in the short run.” Li said that the stimulus package has already achieved initial success, especially in the domestic air transport market, which has begun to rebound. He predicts that the civil aviation industry will remain profitable this year. In the keynote speech, Wang recalled the development of the general administration of civil aviation in China. He said the CAAC, especially since reform and opening up in the 1970s, has sustained rapid development of China’s civil aviation and expanded the volume of transport. Between 1978 and 2008, China’s total air transport turnover sported an average growth of 17.5 percent and by 2008 has reached 37.68 billion ton-kilometers. Since 2005, the total civil aviation transport volume in China (excluding Hong Kong, Macao and Taiwan) has maintained the second position in the world. And despite the economic downturn, airlines are expected to clear more than 800 million yuan in profit during the first quarter of this year. Under the theme "Strengthening Aviation Partnerships," the forum is aimed to help enhance the technical and commercial relationship between the U.S. and Chinese industries in response to this dramatic growth. The USTDA-sponsored forum involves a series of senior-level plenary workshops on airport development, air traffic control (ATC) management and safety, ATC capacity and efficiency, aviation environmental issues, airspace utilization, airport security and general aviation development. In furthering its commitment to advance China’s aviation sector growth, USTDA awarded a 1.2 million dollars grant at the forum to expand the highly successful U.S.-China Aviation Cooperation Program. This fifth phase of funding will support an airport environmental best practices technical assistance program; a fourth class of the successful executive management development training program; and institute a new program on air traffic management executive training. On this occasion, the aviation officials launched the U.S.-China Airport Environmental Partnership at the forum and reaffirmed their commitment to the successful U.S.-China Aviation Cooperation Program (ACP). It is envisioned that the expansion of the ACP through the USTDA grant will strengthen the bilateral partnership and open commercial opportunities for the export of U.S. manufactured goods and services. In addition, an MOU was signed today by Acting Director Zak, Administrator Li, and FAA Acting Assistant Administrator for International Aviation Dorothy B. Reimold establishing the U.S.-China Airport Environmental Partnership. Established in 2004, the ACP links the U.S. and Chinese governments and aviation industries in a multi-faceted program to promote technical, policy and commercial cooperation. The USTDA grant awarded today will partially fund the next phase of ACP programs with matching funds provided by the U.S. aviation industry and a significant contribution by the CAAC. The programs are designed to expose CAAC managers and future leaders to U.S. aviation practices, procedures and technologies as they work to establish a framework for managing the continued growth of China’s aviation sector. In presenting the grant, USTDA Acting Director Leocadia I. Zak explained that both environmental solutions and technologies are critical to sustainable growth in the aviation sector. He said that by working with government partners and civil aviation industries in both the U.S. and China , USTDA is helping both nations’ aviation systems grow together in mutually beneficial ways. And by sharing experiences and best practices with each other, Zak said both countries can achieve results that will strengthen their respective systems and shape the future of commercial aviation. In addition, Zak said his agency is promoting a high-level dialogue between the United States and China to address current and future challenges to the growth of the aviation sector, including discussions on how to mitigate environmental impacts from increased commercial aviation. Zak and CAAC Administrator Li Jiaxiang signed a grant agreement officially conferring the USTDA funds. In the last two decades, China’s civil aviation sector has undergone significant development and will continue on a fast-paced growth trajectory, with total air traffic volume expected to double by 2010 from 2005 levels. To meet this rising demand for aviation services, China plans to spend 30 billion yuan on aviation infrastructure in 2009 and 17 billion yuan on airport construction and expansion over the next five years. CAAC Deputy Administrator Wang said the General Administration of Civil Aviation of China in 2020 will achieve the total transport volume for more than 140 billion ton-kilometers and a passenger transport volume of more than 700 million passengers. Ultimately, officials said the goal is to build 240 airports to attain more than 100 kilometers of traffic on the ground or 1.5-hour drive range to an airport for more than 80 percent of the national county-level administrative unit, and to provide more convenient access to air services for more than 82 percent of the country’s population. They predicted that China’s civil aviation market has broad prospects, and the current difficulties are only temporary. And as long as the confidence remains, officials said Civil Aviation Administration China will usher in greater development of China’s economic and social development of civil aviation and contribute to the development of civil aviation worldwide.