By Danny Boutin, Senior Manager, APEX Programmes, ACI World
Declan Collier, CEO London City Airport; Angela Gittens, Director General, ACI World; Mam Sait Jallow, Regional Director, International Civil Aviation Organization (ICAO) Western and Central Africa Office (WACAF); Nina Brooks, Head, Security, ACI World; Romesh Bhoyroo, CEO Airports of Mauritius Ltd; and Danny Boutin, Senior Manager, APEX Programmes, ACI World.
On Wednesday 18 October, during the course of the ACI World Annual General Assembly (WAGA) in Mauritius, ACI launched the Airport Excellence (APEX) in Security Programme. Based on the same principles as APEX in Safety, the programme covers all aspects of Operational Security Management, with assessments being performed by peers that consist of the best airport security experts from around the world.
It was in Mauritius back in April 2016 that the very first APEX in Security pilot was conducted. Since then, five other pilot reviews have been performed in Indonesia (four reviews) and Zambia.
“I am pleased to officially launch APEX in Security, one year after having signed a Memorandum of Understanding with ICAO, which sees both organisations working more closely towards the objectives of the programme,” added Angela Gittens, Director General, ACI World.
“I hope that many airports will benefit from the knowledge, expertise and leadership of the community of airports. Every airport can benefit and every airport can contribute.”
Speaking on behalf of the President of the ICAO Council, Mam Sait Jallow, Regional Director, ICAO Western and Central Africa Office (WACAF) said: “ICAO appreciates that great progress can be achieved on the basis of the excellent cooperation established between our organisation, ACI and other industry stakeholders. This is very important today as we seek to confront and manage the challenges of sectoral growth together, and to the benefit of operators, facilities and sustainable societies all over the world. Member States remain very grateful for these proactive industry contributions and we will be looking forward to more of the same in the years ahead.”
With the continuous and evolving security threat challenging the aviation industry, and a strong demand for compliance with standards coming from the UN Security Council, ICAO and governments, it has become imperative that airports have the most effective, appropriate and cost-effective security measures in place. APEX in Security plays a key role in helping airports understand where they can improve in terms of security standards, best practice and operational efficiency and the programme can also rely on strong partnership with organisations such ICAO and the European Commission.
Indeed, after partnering with EASA over the last 2 years in conducting missions in Western and Central Africa, the European Union is also partnering with ACI to provide assistance in Africa and Middle Eastern airports in order to enhance Security Operational Management.
Furthermore, ACI EUROPE’s twinning initiative, as part of APEX in Security, aims at helping European Non-EU States achieve One-Stop Security with the European Union. The assessment will be conducted under the EU Regulations and will comprise a team of European experts.
David Ryder, Head of Aviation Security at ACI EUROPE, comments: “The launching of the APEX in Security Programme couldn’t be more timely, with the European Union and other states looking to “raise the baseline” of global aviation security. APEX in Security, working at the airport level complements the capacity building being carried out by regulators across the world. Where better to start the programme than in the European region with the first APEX in Security peer review at Tirana International Airport, Albania. The peer review of TIA will speed up the process to allow for the application by the Albanian CAA to request One Stop Security with the EU.”
We invite European airports to join the programme and become APEX Partners, in both safety and security, and share their knowledge and best practices in operational management, as APEX will also start to offer safety reviews under EASA Regulation in 2018.
For more information on the APEX Programmes, contact Danny Boutin, Senior Manager, APEX Programmes at dboutin@aci.aero.
