SINGAPORE, Feb. 7 (Xinhua) -- The International Air Transport Association (IATA) and the Civil Aviation Authority of Singapore (CAAS) announced here Wednesday to establish a Global Safety Predictive Analytics Research Center (SPARC) in Singapore.
The center will work to identify potential aviation safety hazards and assess related risks by leveraging the research capabilities in Singapore, and operational flight data and safety information that are available under IATA's Global Aviation Data Management (GADM) initiative, according to a memorandum of collaboration signed by Alexandre de Juniac, director general and CEO of IATA, and Kevin Shum, director-general of CAAS.
Among the top concern will be runway safety, such as runway excursions, which are the most frequent category of accidents in recent years, according to IATA's analysis.
"Safety is aviation's highest priority and all stakeholders are committed to making flying even safer. The accident investigation process will continue to be a fundamental tool in improving safety. However, as the number of accidents declines, we need to take a system-based, data-driven, predictive approach to preventing accidents, including analyzing the more than 10,000 flights that operate safely every day," said Juniac.
"The establishment of SPARC in Singapore is especially timely given the anticipated doubling of air traffic in the Asia Pacific by 2036. SPARC's predictive data analytics capabilities will help the aviation sector in Asia Pacific better anticipate, prioritise and address safety issues more effectively," Shum added.
