In the period from November 2 to November 3, 2023, the Aviation Administration of Kazakhstan JSC is hosting a Regional Seminar on Aviation Security on the topic “Emerging Threats in Civil Aviation.” This seminar is conducted by the European Civil Aviation Conference (ECAC) with the support of the Civil Aviation Committee of the Ministry of Transport of the Republic of Kazakhstan and the AAK.

The event is attended by international experts from France, Great Britain, Portugal, Ukraine, Azerbaijan, Georgia, Bulgaria, Spain, Kyrgyzstan, Uzbekistan, and Tajikistan, as well as representatives of the CAC, AAK, the Department of Police on Transport of the Ministry of Internal Affairs of the Republic of Kazakhstan, and the Border Service of the National Security Committee of the Republic of Kazakhstan. The main purpose of the event is to bring together all stakeholders for a common approach to identifying, assessing, and mitigating new and emerging threats in civil aviation.

At the opening ceremony, welcoming speeches were made by the Chairman of the ECAC Aviation Security Forum, Policy Officer of the European Commission Carla Pinto, Head of Cooperation of the Delegation of the European Union to Kazakhstan Johannes Baur, Deputy Director General for Aviation Security of the Aviation Administration of Kazakhstan JSC Darkhan Yespotanov and aviation security expert of the CASE II Project ECAC Alexander Yankov.

During the seminar, aviation security experts will discuss the following topical issues: protecting the airport from drones; threats related to human performance; response to laser attacks; cyber threats; insider threat in the field of aviation security; the threat of unmanned aerial vehicles to civil aviation; threat of using MANPADS; threat to aviation security in the uncontrolled area of the airport; flights to conflict zones.

To stay ahead of these emerging threats, it is important for aviation security professionals to take a proactive approach to security through international cooperation. It also requires ongoing training and education of security personnel, as well as regular communication and collaboration with other stakeholders, including law enforcement agencies and international partners.

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The European Civil Aviation Conference (ECAC) is an intergovernmental structure that was created in 1955. It includes 44 member states, including all 28 EU countries (Great Britain, the Netherlands, Germany, France, and others), as well as Azerbaijan, Armenia, Georgia, Moldova and Ukraine among the CIS countries.

ECAC is a discussion platform for discussing the prospects for air transport production, the interests of air passengers and carriers, and safety issues. This is facilitated by the expert role of the conference, its connection with the International Civil Aviation Organization and the Council of Europe, cooperation with Eurocontrol, support from the European Aviation Safety Agency EASA and interaction with other organizations.

Kazakhstan received observer status at the European Civil Aviation Conference in 2021.