Airport Governance in Asia: Role of IATA
摘要
The International Air Transport Association (IATA), established in 1945, is a non-governmental and non-political organization, comprising more than three hundred airlines across the world. This commercial and voluntary multinational body operates with the goal of regulating and enhancing civil air transport throughout the world. Other than regulations and guidelines for the airlines, the IATA also provides tools, suggestions, and best practices for airports, to be implemented by the airport operators, governments, and other relevant entities. It has been widely recognised that without ensuring that the airports comply with certain minimum requirements regarding infrastructure, governance, and sustainability, safe and sustainable international air travel will simply not be possible. However, considering that the IATA membership is limited to airlines only and does not include any representatives of relevant airports or nations, implementation of IATA recommendations in aerodromes is abysmally low. The problem is also compounded by the fact that the IATA is a body with voluntary membership and lacks enforcement mechanisms, so it cannot ensure compliance across the different airports. Against this backdrop, this Chapter analyses the implementation of IATA’s airport- related guidelines in the Asian continent, particularly in the context of three nations of different levels—Japan as a developed nation, India as a developing nation, and Bangladesh as a least developed nation. After analysing how these nations are faring regarding IATA’s aerodrome-related guidelines, the author provides recommendations as to how to balance the need for better compliance of IATA’s airport-related standards with the nation-specific challenges.