International Civil Aviation Organization
The International Civil Aviation Organization (ICAO /ˌaɪˈkeɪoʊ/ eye-KAY-oh) is a specialized agency of the United Nations that coordinates the principles and techniques of international air navigation, and fosters the planning and development of international air transport to ensure safe and orderly growth.[2] The ICAO headquarters are located in the Quartier international de Montréal of Montreal, Quebec, Canada.
Not to be confused with the International Air Transport Association.Abbreviation
ICAO
4 April 1947
Active
- Arabic
- Chinese
- English
- French
- Russian
- Spanish
Salvatore Sciacchitano
- Triennial Assembly
- ICAO Council
- ICAO Secretariat
The ICAO Council adopts standards and recommended practices concerning air navigation, its infrastructure, flight inspection, prevention of unlawful interference, and facilitation of border-crossing procedures for international civil aviation. ICAO defines the protocols for air accident investigation that are followed by transport safety authorities in countries signatory to the Convention on International Civil Aviation.[3]
The Air Navigation Commission (ANC) is the technical body within ICAO. The commission is composed of 19 commissioners, nominated by the ICAO's contracting states and appointed by the ICAO Council.[4] Commissioners serve as independent experts, who although nominated by their states, do not serve as state or political representatives. International Standards and Recommended Practices are developed under the direction of the ANC through the formal process of ICAO Panels. Once approved by the commission, standards are sent to the council, the political body of ICAO, for consultation and coordination with the member states before final adoption.
ICAO is distinct from other international air transport organisations, particularly because it alone is vested with international authority (among signatory states): other organisations include the International Air Transport Association (IATA), a trade association representing airlines; the Civil Air Navigation Services Organization (CANSO), an organisation for Air navigation service providers (ANSPs); and the Airports Council International, a trade association of airport authorities.
History[edit]
20th century[edit]
The forerunner to ICAO was the International Commission for Air Navigation (ICAN).[2] It held its first convention in 1903 in Berlin, Germany, but no agreements were reached among the eight countries that attended. At the second convention in 1906, also held in Berlin, twenty-seven countries attended.[5] The third convention, held in London in 1912, allocated the first radio callsigns for use by aircraft. ICAN continued to operate until 1945.[6][7]
The Convention on International Civil Aviation, also known as the Chicago Convention, in Chicago, was signed by 52 countries on 7 December 1944. Under its terms, a Provisional International Civil Aviation Organization was to be established, to be replaced in turn by a permanent organization when twenty-six countries ratified the convention. PICAO began operating on 6 June 1945, replacing ICAN. The 26th country ratified the convention on 5 March 1947 and, consequently, PICAO was disestablished on 4 April 1947 and replaced by ICAO, which began operations the same day.
In October 1947, ICAO became an agency of the United Nations under its Economic and Social Council (ECOSOC).[6][8]
21st century[edit]
In April 2013, Qatar offered to serve as the new permanent seat of the Organization. Qatar promised to construct a massive new headquarters for ICAO and to cover all moving expenses, stating that Montreal "was too far from Europe and Asia", "had cold winters", was hard to attend due to the Canadian government's slow issuance of visas, and that the taxes imposed on ICAO by Canada were too high.[9] According to The Globe and Mail, Qatar's invitation was at least partly motivated by the pro-Israel foreign policy of Canadian Prime Minister Stephen Harper.[10][11]
Approximately a month later, Qatar withdrew its bid after a separate proposal to the ICAO's governing council to move the ICAO triennial conference to Doha was defeated by a vote of 22–14.[12][13][14]
Statute[edit]
The 9th edition of the Convention on International Civil Aviation includes modifications from years 1948 up to 2006. ICAO refers to its current edition of the convention as the Statute and designates it as ICAO Document 7300/9. The convention has 19 Annexes that are listed by title in the article Convention on International Civil Aviation.[24]
Since 2010, ICAO recommends a unification of units of measurement within aviation based on the International System of Units (SI), using:[45][46]
Non-SI units have been permitted for temporary use since 1979,[47] but a termination date has not yet been established, which would complete metrication of worldwide aviation,[48] and the following units are still in widespread use within commercial aviation:
inches of mercury are used in Japan and North America to measure pressure, although sometimes METAR at Japanese airports show only hPa.[48]
Aviation in Russia and China currently use km/h for reporting airspeed, and many present-day European glider planes also indicate airspeed in kilometres per hour. China[48] and North Korea[48] use metres for reporting altitude when communicating with pilots.[48] Russia also formerly used metres exclusively for reporting altitude, but in 2011 changed to feet for high altitude flight. From February 2017, Russian airspace started transitioning to reporting altitude in feet only.[48] Runway lengths are now commonly given in metres worldwide, except in North America where feet are commonly used.[48]
The following table summarizes units commonly used in flight and ground operations and their recommended replacement.[46] A full list of recommended units can be found in annex 5 to the Convention on International Civil Aviation.[46]
† Altitude, elevation, height.[46]
ICAO has a headquarters, seven regional offices, and one regional sub-office:[50]
Drone regulations and registration[edit]
ICAO is looking at having a singular ledger for drone registration to help law enforcement globally. Currently, ICAO is responsible for creating drone regulations across the globe, and it is expected that it will only maintain the registry. This activity is seen as a forerunner to global regulations on flying drones under the auspices of the ICAO.[65]
ICAO currently maintains the 'UAS Regulation Portal'[66] for various countries to list their country's UAS regulations and also review the best practices from across the globe.