East Africa on notice as IATA flags emerging threats to global aviation safety

October 15, 2025 in Companies, Travel & Tourism by Editor

As Uganda and other African states scale up air connectivity, IATA urges investment in digital safety infrastructure, cross-sector coordination, and a culture of proactive oversight.

 

As global airspace becomes more contested and technological interference grows, the International Air Transport Association (IATA) has urged governments and regulators to take stronger action to protect aviation safety systems — including those directly affecting Ugandan airspace.

Speaking at the opening of the World Safety and Operations Conference (WSOC) in Xiamen, China, IATA underscored three urgent priorities for the industry: defending global standards, fostering strong safety leadership, and harnessing data to predict and mitigate risks.

According to IATA, a rise in Global Navigation Satellite System (GNSS) interference, increasing pressure on the radio spectrum used for aviation communications, and delays in accident investigation reporting are among the biggest threats to safe flight operations worldwide.

For Uganda — which lies within a region increasingly integrated into global air routes and reliant on satellite-based navigation — the warning could not be timelier.

“Ensuring aviation remains the safest mode of transport requires strong leadership, robust adherence to global standards, and smarter use of data,” said Mark Searle, IATA’s Global Director for Safety. “By focusing on these — industry and government together — we will build a safer, more resilient and increasingly efficient global aviation system.”

IATA data shows that reports of GNSS interference have risen by more than 200 percent between 2021 and 2024, with cases of satellite signal “spoofing” and “jamming” spreading from conflict zones to commercial corridors. While most incidents have been reported over Eastern Europe and parts of the Middle East, East Africa’s growing use of GNSS-based navigation systems for both civil and cargo flights makes it increasingly vulnerable.

Uganda’s Entebbe Flight Information Region (FIR) has long adopted satellite navigation and communications for both international and domestic operations. Disruptions to GNSS could affect everything from approach accuracy at Entebbe International Airport to regional route planning, potentially leading to delays or costly diversions.

To address the threat, IATA and the European Union Aviation Safety Agency (EASA) have launched a GNSS Resilience Plan based on four pillars: continuous monitoring and reporting, improved prevention tools, backup infrastructure, and closer civil–military coordination. The next step, IATA says, is for the International Civil Aviation Organization (ICAO) to formalise these measures into binding global standards.

The second major threat is radio spectrum congestion. Aviation communications — including air-to-ground voice transmissions and navigational beacons — rely on frequencies protected under International Telecommunication Union (ITU) rules. However, the global rollout of 5G and emerging 6G networks has begun to encroach on these frequencies.

In the United States, Canada, and Australia, airlines have been forced to retrofit aircraft radio altimeters after interference from 5G towers near airports. IATA warns that similar disruptions could emerge elsewhere unless national telecommunications regulators act early.

For Uganda, where the rollout of advanced mobile networks is accelerating, the concern is real. The Uganda Communications Commission (UCC) will have to collaborate closely with the Uganda Civil Aviation Authority (UCAA) to safeguard the country’s aviation spectrum allocations. Without such coordination, IATA warns, future interference could jeopardize not only safety but also the cost and reliability of regional air transport.

Timely Accident Investigation Reporting

A third area of concern is the slow pace of accident investigations globally. Under the Chicago Convention’s Annex 13, states are obligated to publish final investigation reports promptly. Yet, between 2019 and 2023, only 58 percent of aviation accidents produced final reports.

Delayed reporting, IATA said, hampers learning and fuels misinformation. The Association praised recent improvements in countries such as India, South Korea, and the United States, but urged African states to accelerate their processes.

Uganda’s aviation authorities have in recent years been lauded for improving safety oversight under ICAO’s Universal Safety Oversight Audit Programme, but IATA’s call reinforces the need to maintain momentum — especially as Uganda Airlines expands its international operations and as regional air traffic density increases.

IATA’s third priority area — using data to enhance performance — underscores the digital transformation sweeping aviation. Through its Global Aviation Data Management (GADM) programme, IATA is integrating flight, incident, and maintenance data from hundreds of airlines to identify risks before they cause accidents.

Among the tools making a difference is Turbulence Aware, a real-time platform that collects and shares turbulence data directly from aircraft sensors. Participation has grown 25percent in the past year, with over 3,200 aircraft — including those from Air France, Etihad, and SAS — contributing live data.

For East African carriers, joining such platforms could mean better route planning and reduced weather-related injuries. As climate change intensifies weather volatility over the Equatorial and Indian Ocean corridors, predictive turbulence management could become a critical safety and cost-saving measure.

IATA has also expanded its SafetyIS database, which analyses in-flight data from 217 airlines to identify anomalies such as spikes in collision-avoidance alerts. In one example, predictive data helped pre-empt risks at a Latin American airport. The same principle, experts say, can be applied to African airports to detect and resolve hazards early.

Beyond technology, IATA emphasised leadership and culture as the backbone of aviation safety. Its Safety Leadership Charter, now covering 90percent of global traffic, promotes eight principles of safety leadership designed to empower employees to speak up and report safety concerns without fear of reprisal.

Additionally, IATA Connect — a digital hub linking more than 5,600 users from over 600 organisations — enables access to operational audits, safety documentation, and best practices. The platform will soon extend to ground handling operators through ISAGO, further standardizing safety culture across the industry.

Implications for Uganda

As Uganda seeks to consolidate its position as a regional aviation hub through the expansion of Entebbe International Airport and the growth of Uganda Airlines, IATA’s message carries local urgency.

Safeguarding GNSS systems, securing radio spectrum, and investing in data-driven safety tools are no longer optional but prerequisites for competitiveness and resilience. For the UCAA and the Ministry of Works and Transport, the challenge will be to integrate these priorities into national aviation policy and infrastructure planning.

In an era where airspace is both crowded and contested, the next leap in aviation success will depend not only on modern runways and new routes, but also on digital vigilance, regulatory coordination, and leadership rooted in a safety-first culture.