Dear Members and Partners,
As we approach the 42nd ICAO Assembly this September, I’d like to take this opportunity to reflect on the crucial role of airports in shaping the future of global aviation—and how ACI is working to ensure that your priorities are reflected at the highest levels of international decision-making.
Held every three years in Montreal, the ICAO Assembly gathers over 2,000 leaders from governments and civil aviation authorities to set the international policies, priorities, and standards that govern our industry. These decisions influence everything from safety regulations to sustainability targets, security frameworks, and how innovation is adopted across borders.
Elevating the airport voice on the global stage
This Assembly is a defining moment for airports. Working in close coordination with ACI’s Regional offices, ACI World will be actively participating in the Assembly to ensure airport needs and realities shape the future of aviation.
ACI has submitted six Working Papers to the Assembly focused on key policy areas essential to the success of our members under the theme: Transform Airports, Empower Aviation and Connect the World.
These Working Papers include:
Barriers to air connectivity and consumers
Urges States to remove regulatory, fiscal, and visa-related barriers that hinder air connectivity, in order to boost traffic growth, enhance affordability, and advance sustainable socio-economic development.
Meeting growing airports’ energy demand to enable decarbonization
Calls on States to ensure airports have access to reliable and renewable energy—through national coordination and policy support—to meet rising demand and achieve long-term decarbonization goals.
Safety Fundamentals: Aerodrome Certification
Urges ICAO and States to prioritize certification of all airports and support industry-led programs to work with airports to attain certification (ACI is piloting such a program) – all to ensure global safety and sustainable air transport growth.
Strengthening the Aviation Security Equipment Testing and Certification Process
Calls for the harmonization of security equipment certification to improve global coordination, reduce deployment delays, and enable faster adoption of innovative technologies that enhance both security and the passenger experience.
Seamless passenger experience
Urges States to coordinate policies and collaborate with industry to enable a seamless, secure passenger experience by adopting scalable biometric and digital identity solutions at our borders to better accommodate growing air travel demand.
Toward a modern airport slot policy framework for social and economic growth
Calls for modernizing the global aviation slot policy to better reflect public interest, economic goals, and structural changes in aviation.
Why this matters for airports and the travelling public
The decisions made at the ICAO Assembly ripple far beyond Montreal. They inform national aviation strategies, regulatory environments, and infrastructure investments across all regions. Whether we’re talking about the introduction of new safety protocols or the deployment of biometric technologies at borders, these outcomes impact the way airports serve passengers and communities.
It’s critical that airports play a proactive advocacy role as part of the Assembly. Not just to promote our priorities, but also to constructively challenge policies that may not align with airport needs or aviation’s best interests.
For the public, this is about building a safer, more seamless, and more sustainable air transport system that supports global mobility and economic development. For airports, it’s about ensuring that our industry is equipped to accommodate and manage growth, meet climate goals, and deliver outstanding service in an increasingly complex operational landscape.
Building a future-ready aviation system
Ultimately, our goal is to secure policy outcomes that align with ACI World’s mission and strategic drivers—outcomes that embed airport priorities into global aviation guidance and national policies for the years ahead.
Our advocacy at ICAO is rooted in collaboration and impact. If successful, our proposals will help shape a future where:
- Airports are empowered to decarbonize and meet energy demand;
- Passengers benefit from seamless, safe, and secure journeys; and
- Aviation is guided by modern connectivity, commercial and slot allocation principles.
These are essential for a resilient and future-ready aviation ecosystem, and we are committed to seeing them realized.
All you need to know about ACI’s voice at ICAO, explained in one video
Join us on this journey
I invite all our members and partners to stay engaged as we head into the Assembly. ACI World will continue to share updates through our website and platforms throughout the event, and we will communicate key outcomes with the community in the weeks that follow.
Let me close with a message: When we speak with one voice, we are stronger. This Assembly is a platform for progress and together we can ensure that airports remain central to global connectivity and socio-economic development in the decades to come.
Join the conversation of social media: #EmpowerAviation
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