Washington:
India and the US are in final stages of an agreement on sharing information and technology to enhance their capabilities to detect threats in air travel, a top Indian official has said.
"We are in the final stage for signing of Memorandum of Agreement (MoA) for sharing of sensitive security information to help each other in enhancing the capabilities of detection of threat items," Aviation Secretary K N Srivastava said at a meeting of aviation experts and officials during the India-US Aviation Summit which concluded in Washington yesterday.
Srivastava said this agreement would require sharing of knowledge as well as supply of latest technical gadgets including body scanners, threat containment vehicles etc.
"India has played an important role in developing International Civil Aviation Organization Universal Security Audit Programme by offering its expertise," he said in his remarks during the inaugural session of the three-day Aviation Summit, which brought together top government officials, corporate leaders and experts from both the countries.
In the field of aviation security, India has already signed two MoUs with US i.e. on technical visits by teams from either country as well as safe and secure movement of Federal Air Marshals to each country, he said.
Srivastava said that in order to provide harmonisation of upper air space; reduction in separation on major routes based on seamless radar and ADS-B coverage, reduced separation on RNAV routes, continuous descent operations, INSPIRE programmes, ANS of India seeks valuable cooperation of US in the technical expertise as well as equipment.
While ADS-B - Automatic dependent surveillance-broadcast - is a cooperative surveillance technology for tracking aircraft, RNAV or Area navigation is a method of instrument flight rules (IFR) navigation that allows an aircraft to choose any course within a network of navigation beacons, rather than navigating directly to and from the beacons.
"To maintain the sustainability of civil aviation operation we need to have maintenance, repair and operations (MRO) business and the Government of India has made several concessions," he said, adding that the industry has widely welcomed these concessions.
"However, it is necessary for growth of MRO industry that FAA may give certification. Indian MROs and organizational approval for component repair and overhauls. The recognition of DGCA licenses of airport mechanics for FAA is also required," he said.