JEDDAH — The General Authority of Civil Aviation (GACA) has launched eight initiatives targeting various sectors in the field of civil aviation and logistical services. This comes within the National Industrial Development and Logistics Program, one of the Kingdom’s Vision 2030 programs aimed at transforming the Kingdom into a leading industrial power and an international logistic platform.

GACA aims through its vision which comes in line with the Kingdom’s Vision 2030 that seeks to promote and develop national industries in the field of air transport, and achieve a safe environment in accordance with the most stringent international safety standards and build a global airport system to service a targeted group of travelers, in addition to companies that deals with air and ground services locally and internationally.

The first initiative is the establishment and expansion of airports to meet the expectation of growth in air traffic that aims to contribute to the growth of the economy and the development of its infrastructure as needed presently and in the future.

The second initiative is to achieve the highest standards of aviation safety with full compliance with international safety standards. This in an effort to ensure the highest safety standards in aviation sector by developing and implementing the highest calibers of safety and security programs.

In the field of airfreight services, an initiative was introduced to liberate the airfreight sector and increase its capacity. This initiative aim to increase the efficiency and increase the capacity of air cargo services in the Kingdom by developing fright cities in Riyadh, Jeddah and Dammam. Also it is an effort to improve ground handling services, and apply the best practices in regard to flights schedule, ticket prices, in addition to improve customer experience.

In order to enable optimal use of the Kingdom’s airspace, an initiative to develop navigational system and procedures to improve the efficiency of use of the Kingdom’s airspace was introduced. This step was taken to enable the optimal use of the Kingdom’s airspace through the development of navigational system and procedures, information network and radar communication networks for air navigation. A step that was taken to upgrade performance level and coordination with the Ministry of Defense to reduce restricted areas, which effects the most important flight routes in the Kingdom.

In the area of flight scheduling and domestic airfares, and intuitive was introduce to apply the best practices for flight scheduling, domestic air ticket prices and for the supported air routes for the Public Service Obligation (PSO).

Moreover, in order to Saudize the aviation sector, an initiative was introduced to support Saudi national airliners, including the recently established ones, to promote employment in this sector. Furthermore, to accelerate the localization of support services in the aviation industry and to acquire the top-notch males and females graduates. The next step is the assurance that those students get high quality training at the best training centers, in which emphasis will be put on MRO (maintenance repair and operation).

An initiative was also introduced to apply the best international technology and innovation to improve the sector performance and customer experience. This initiative aims to establish a dedicated unit for managing innovation within GACA. This unit will be in charge of analyzing the future trends and recommend adopting the latest technologies and best practices in the aviation sector. Develop the technical and information systems and communication networks in the air transport sector.

Lastly, in order to achieve customer satisfaction, an initiative was introduced to improve the overall customer experience at the Kingdom’s airports. The initiative aims to enhance and improve the experience of customers at the Kingdom’s airports by developing the level of customer service and improve the service level and procedures of government agencies operating in the Kingdom’s airports (such as immigration control and customs). — SG