Guatemala seeks to break with 23 years of air safety lag

After 23 years, Guatemala committed to the International Civil Aviation Organization (ICAO) to establish and implement rules to guarantee protection in airports and airfields, as well as to guarantee the protection of the national airspace.

This happens after Tuesday, June 3, the signing of the Interinstitutional Agreement of the National Civil Aviation Security Program (PNSAC) was signed, which seeks to strengthen the protection of Guatemalan civil aviation.

With this agreement, Guatemala undertakes to comply with Annex 17 of the Convention on International Civil Aviation, where rules and practices are established by ICAO, to safeguard civil aviation against acts of illicit interference, threats and other emerging risks such as sabotage and terrorism.

How does the signing of the agreement arise?

This inter -institutional agreement, signed by The Ministries of the Interior, Communications, National Defense, Foreign Relations and the Superintendence of Tax Administration, (SAT) It is the result of the implementation, in 2002, of Standard 3.1.7 within Annex 17 of the Convention on International Civil Aviation, known as the “Chicago Agreement”, an international treaty in which the principles and norms that must govern international civil aviation, according to the ICAO website, must govern, according to the ICAO website.

This annex gained relevance in 2002, after the attacks of September 11 in the United States.

From these facts, ICAO created the creation of standard 3.1.7, where it is established that each of the signatory states must have a National Security Committee for Civil Aviation and its equivalent mechanisms.

As reported by the Guatemalan Foreign Ministry, in a press release, it was at that time that Guatemala was requested to create this Interinstitutional Committee, responsible for coordinating the security actions and the corresponding measures for the protection of civil aviation in its territory.

After two decades of the introduction of the aforementioned standard, Guatemala was one of the few states that had not yet attended its implementationwhich has limited the introduction of security measures in airports and airfields, as well as the protection of the national airspace.

This has restricted the country’s ability to prevent, detect and respond to any threat to air safety.

With the signing of the agreement between the different ministries, it is expected to raise the security levels of civil aviation, both in the preventive field and in the response capacity, through common protocols, interoperability, exchange of information, training and joint supervision.

Importance of its implementation

With the implementation of this inter -institutional agreement, the State assumes the commitment to comply with international standards and strengthen their internal capacities against risks that threaten civil aviation globallysuch as terrorism, drug trafficking, arms and people traffic, as well as other transnational crimes that affect air security.

“Our commitment as the Ministry of National Defense is clear, since we will work together with the competent institutions to ensure that the national airspace is safe. Within its competence, the Guatemala army will put our surveillance, technology, cyber -defense and logistical support capabilities at the service of the program,” said the Deputy Minister of Defense, Erwin Gómez.

“The security of civil aviation cannot be addressed in a fragmented way; we need to act under a framework of firm cooperation. Security threats do not recognize borders and the best way to face them is with shared integration and information,” said the Minister of the Interior, Francisco Jiménez.

“We recognize that the security of civil aviation is not the exclusive responsibility of the aeronautical sector; it is a shared task that requires the will, commitment and coordinated action of multiple state institutions. As a tax and customs authority in the country, our work in points of exit of the national territory places us as a strategic actor in this task,” said Werner Ovalle, Superintendent of Tax Administration.

What is the International Civil Aviation Agreement?

The International Civil Aviation Agreement, also known as the “Chicago Convention”, was signed in 1944 and entered into force in 1947 with the endorsement of more than 52 countries.

This agreement establishes the rights and duties of the States in relation to civil aviation.

It stipulates the creation of the International Civil Aviation Organization, which is until today the entity responsible for ensuring its application and supervision of the same by all states that are signed to it.

As for Annex 17 of the Agreement, this contains the recommended standards and practices for the protection of international civil aviation against acts that may put security at risk, such as terrorism, drug trafficking and other activities of illicit interference.

It seeks to guarantee a safe and reliable environment for passengers, crew and users in general within the civil air mobilization, as well as the effectiveness in its operations.

Annex 17 is periodically reviewed by ICAO, with the aim of adapting it and readciring it to new technologies or threats that could jeopardize the safety of civil aviation globally.