At this time of crisis, can business aviation be of service to governments, corporations, and communities? AsBAA Board of Governors member and Metrojet general manager for the China AOC Michael Chen talks about the ramifications of COVID-19 and the role of business aviation at this time:

“It is a global issue. Part of the related challenges are communication-based, and while swift coordination between stakeholders is vital, the lack of any cohesive crisis strategy has slowed that process down. Going forward as an industry, through AsBAA, the question should be: what kind of mechanism and/or platform is most effective for business and general aviation to be of service to governments, corporations and communities? We know that the industry has been a lifeline to communities across the world in times of disaster and crisis. In the case of COVID-19, the scale of the outbreak, along with limited plans in place, has caused delays.

“The Civil Aviation Administration of China (CAAC) has announced some regulatory changes to enable the industry to be part of the disaster relief, as the government has recognised that it plays a unique and vital role in the movement of crisis and medical personnel, emergency medical transportation, traffic directing, air survey and air disinfection. It also recently launched its General Aviation Management System, an interface between the government and general and business aviation operations that allows operators to log on to help transport resources for disaster relief. Their participation is voluntary, not mandatory, and registered operators can update their available resources for relief purposes on a daily basis.

“So far there has been enormous participation from within the industry; operators and individuals have shown willingness to support the affected communities and many have donated resources for medical services.

“The significant difficulties faced by airlines are caused by the government’s block on the movement of passengers. Business and general aviation is not exempt from the same public health measures, meaning that all aviation stakeholders face the same lockdown.

“We need to work together for a solution to support the government and aid agencies to fight the outbreak of the disease and return to normality as quickly as possible, while providing assistance to those in need. Separately, drones (UAV operators) can provide services to urban communities and villages, offering short-term relief.