Fees and penalties sections hold back security legislation

Last chance for industry to comment on Part 108 THE LAUNCH of the longawaited Part 108 aviation security regulations is just around the corner, according to minister of transport Jeff Radebe – marking a new regime which will cost the airfreight industry big bucks to comply in the view of security specialists in the sector. The document, already signed by Radebe, was returned for a rewrite before release because two sections of Part 108 had still not been finalised and agreed upon. “These,” said John Nelson, regional security manager for TNT Express and vicechairman of the Transported Asset Protection Association (Tapa), “are the technical standards and fees and penalties sections. “The technical standards are the meat on the bones of the overall document – as without the information this section contains, the Part 108 regulation is meaningless. This needed to be rewritten. “Also, the fees and penalties section needed to be finalised so that the minister of finance could add his signature.” But a meeting with the Civil Aviation Authority (CAA) last week has led Nelson to encourage industry to make its voice heard before the regulations are finalised. “The draft document for technical standards has been posted onto the CAA website for comment,” he told FTW. “It will remain on the website for another two weeks and, if you have comments to make about the content, I would suggest that you do so. “If you do not and there are aspects of the document you do not agree with, or would question, then you will only have yourselves to blame when you are given no alternative other than to accept the regulation as it is presented.” But just what impact these comments will make is questionable because – from the information coming out of the CAA and also from government – the final document, including its changes and fees and penalties section, will be promulgated within the next few weeks. “What that will mean for the freight and express industry is anyone’s guess,” said Nelson, “as we have not been given access to any of the agreed parts of the regulation. “But, without doubt, this regulation will have a major financial impact on companies who use the commercial airlines to uplift cargo for transportation.” Part 108 will demand the identification of all goods placed on board aircraft in SA and require all cargo to be X-rayed or otherwise screened prior to loading. This will require all companies directly handling air cargo to acquire their own X-ray screening units (with prices in the region of half-amillion rand a unit, and the on-going labour cost of skilled operating staff) or outsource this function to those who have them. Once Part 108 is implemented there could be big changes for ground handling agents at the airports, said Malcolm Tonkin, operations director of Airline Cargo Resources (ACR). “The smaller operators are unlikely to have the resources to sustain an investment of this size. We predict a major shake-up of the industry this year.” The technical standards can be viewed on the website www.caa.co.za (In the opening page click on CARCOM and then Part 108 CATS info.)