Flight safety oversight in Canada is plunging, according to confidential UN agency draft report

Canada has received a C grade on flight safety oversight — down from an A+ almost two decades ago and far below most of its peers — according to a draft report from a United Nations agency. The confidential audit from the International Civil Aviation Organization (ICAO) obtained by The Canadian Press says the country has fallen precipitously to a score of 64 out of 100, with three areas of safety oversight in particular seeing a big drop-off: aircraft operations, airports and air navigation. Canada’s score topped 95% in the UN body’s previous report in 2005. The UN body recommended that the federal government establish a system to lock in full regulatory compliance by airlines and airports, shore up certification related to dangerous goods and ensure proper training and fatigue management for air traffic controllers. A shortage of the latter and a trend toward off-loading safety responsibilities from government to industry remain concerns across the continent, said Ross Aimer, CEO of California-based Aero Consulting Experts. “Every other day you hear there’s what we call a near miss. I don’t like that term ’near miss’; I would like to call it a near collision,” Aimer said.<br/>