GW Aviation Institute Hosts 12th Aviation Safety and Security Summit

From December 8-12, 2003, GW’s Aviation Institute hosted twenty-six delegates from seven West African countries at the 12th International Summit on Aviation Safety and Security. Led by their respective minister of transportation, permanent secretary of the Ministry of Transportation, or director general of the Civil Aviation Authority, delegates from these countries convened in Washington D.C., for five days of discussions on improving civil aviation safety and security on both the regional and international levels. U.S. government officials and representatives of the West African Economic Community and the International Civil Aviation Organization also attended the Summit.

Ms. Marion Blakey, administrator of the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA), addressed the delegates during the opening ceremony of the Summit, and the Honorable James L. Oberstar, United States House of Representatives (D-MN 8th), ranking minority member, House Committee on Transportation and Infrastructure, addressed the Summit later during the program’s first day.

The summit capped a busy year for GW’s Aviation Institute, which hosted over 200 senior officials from more than 40 countries and international organizations at six summits in Washington D.C., and three regional aviation safety and security programs in Turkey, Costa Rica, and South Africa.

The international summits on aviation safety and security are conducted as part of a three-year, $9 million cooperative agreement between GW and the FAA. The summits are conducted by a consortium of universities led by GW, with the participation of George Mason University, and in partnership with the U.S. Department of Transportation. Professor Vahid Motevalli of the Department of Civil and Environmental Engineering directs the program.