IATA opened its World Safety and Operations Conference in Istanbul on 6 October, using the event to press for tighter alignment between people, technology and global standards as aviation looks for the next step change in safety performance. The three-day conference, hosted by Turkish Airlines, is focused on how airlines and regulators can strengthen operations without losing resilience when systems fail or data becomes unreliable.
Mark Searle, IATA’s safety chief, framed the message around three linked priorities: structured transfer of operational knowledge, blending experienced staff with digitally fluent younger workers, and preserving a reporting culture in which hazards and near-misses can be raised without fear. He argued that AI and other new tools must improve situational awareness and decision-making, but aviation also has to remain safe when technology is unavailable, degraded or compromised.
GNSS interference featured as a current reminder of that need for redundancy, procedures, training and human judgement. IATA also pointed to runway safety, conflict zones and accident investigations as areas where the industry still faces risk despite existing rulebooks.
The association’s wider argument centred on implementation rather than invention. It said the biggest safety gaps often arise from uneven oversight and inconsistent application of standards, not from a lack of them. IOSA was cited as evidence that common global standards backed by oversight can improve performance, with risk-based IOSA presented as part of the same model. IATA called for stronger state compliance with international obligations and for standards to stay relevant as technology and operations evolve.