Recognizing WSIS Impacts

PP RESOLUTION 185 (Busan, 2014)

Global flight tracking for civil aviation

The Plenipotentiary Conference of the International Telecommunication Union ( Busan, 2014),

• recalling
  • the relevant provisions of Article 1 of the ITU Constitution, in particular No. 17, which stipulates that the Union is to promote the adoption of measures for ensuring the safety of life through the cooperation of telecommunication services,
• considering
  • a) that the loss of Flight MH370 spurred worldwide discussions on global flight tracking and the need for coordinated action by ITU and other relevant organization(s), within the scope of their respective mandates;
  • b) that determination of the position of aircraft and reporting this information to air traffic control centres represents an important element of aviation safety and security;
  • c) that the International Civil Aviation Organization (ICAO) has developed Standards and Recommended Practices (SARPs) for systems enabling position determination and tracking of aircraft for air traffic control;
  • d) that the current agenda of the 2015 World Radiocommunication Conference (WRC-15), as contained in ITU Council Resolution 1343 (Council-12), does not directly address the issue of global flight tracking;
  • e) that flight tracking for civil aviation is currently available across the globe, apart from some parts of the polar regions;
  • f) that ICAO, in its special meeting on global flight tracking, Montreal, 12-13 May 2014, encouraged ITU to take action, at the earliest opportunity, to provide the necessary spectrum allocations for satellite when emerging aviation needs are identified,
• considering further
  • a) that studies relating to global flight tracking are ongoing in the ITU Radiocommunication Sector (ITU-R);
  • b) that ITU and ICAO signed a memorandum of understanding in 2012 to establish a framework for enhanced cooperation between the two parties,
• noting
  • that identifying and tracking of civil aircraft flights contributes indirectly to aviation safety,
• resolves
  • to instruct WRC-15, pursuant to No. 119 of the ITU Convention
    • to include in its agenda, as a matter of urgency, the consideration of global flight tracking, including, if appropriate, and consistent with ITU practices, various aspects of the matter, taking into account ITU-R studies,
• instructs the Secretary-General
  • to bring this resolution to the attention of WRC-15 and ICAO,
• instructs the Director of the Radiocommunication Bureau
  • to prepare a specific report on the matter as referred to in resolves above for consideration by WRC-15.