The Dominican Republic was unanimously elected to occupy the first vice-presidency of the Executive Committee of the Latin American Civil Aviation Commission (CLAC), the most important international organization in the region on the subject, during its XXV Extraordinary Assembly that has been held since yesterday, April 8, 2024, in the city of Santiago, Chile.
“The Dominican Republic plays a crucial role in civil aviation at the regional level. Having held the second vice-presidency in the previous term, we now take on a greater challenge by assuming the first. This is firm evidence of our commitment to strengthening civil aviation, not only in Latin America, but also in the rest of the world,” stated the president of the Civil Aviation Board (JAC), José Ernesto Marte Piantini, who will represent the country before this organization for the next two years.
The president of the Civil Aviation Board (JAC) explained that this great achievement is due to the work that has been done. “The support for national and foreign air operators, the implementation of faster models for route analysis, the opening of markets with the signing of air service agreements under the open skies modality, and foreign investment in tourism infrastructure have allowed the Dominican Republic to become a model country and a benchmark for civil aviation and air safety in Latin America and other countries,” the official stated.
He added that currently, in matters under the jurisdiction of the Civil Aviation Board, the country is a regional example in compliance with the standards and recommendations of the International Civil Aviation Organization – ICAO.
Marte Piantini highlighted that civil aviation in the Dominican Republic is currently experiencing its best moment and has developed and strengthened in an unprecedented way. "Our country is undergoing a great opening and liberalization of traffic rights and has a regulatory framework that facilitates investment. In 2023 alone, we registered 132,998 air operations in arrivals and departures, which translates into an estimated direct and indirect revenue for the country of US$16.139 billion.".
He added that 8,574 operations were approved under the special permit modality and a total of 8,016 charter flights were authorized, of which 3,077 correspond to combined passenger and cargo operations and 4,939 to exclusive cargo operations, more than 130 new routes, and more than 530 airlines operated to and from the Dominican Republic, "all this demonstrates a remarkable increase in air connectivity in the Dominican Republic," Marte Piantini assured.
The Latin American Civil Aviation Commission (CLAC) is an international consultative body with a 50-year history and its primary objective is to provide the civil aviation authorities of Latin America with an appropriate structure within which all the measures required for cooperation and coordination of civil aviation activities can be discussed and planned.
“From the first vice presidency, the Dominican Republic will continue working in accordance with CLAC’s mission to promote integration, cooperation and coordination among the States of Latin America,” Marte Piantini stated.
The CLAC plays a prominent role in Latin America by creating a space for discussion of technical, legal and political issues of civil aviation, where the philosophy of consensus essentially predominates, always in full respect for the sovereignty of each State, mentioned the president of the JAC.
The member states of this commission are: Argentina, Aruba, Belize, Bolivia, Brazil, Chile, Colombia, Costa Rica, Cuba, Ecuador, El Salvador, Guatemala, Honduras, Jamaica, Mexico, Nicaragua, Panama, Paraguay, Peru, Dominican Republic, Uruguay and Venezuela.
The President of the JAC stated, within the framework of the assembly, that civil aviation in Latin America and the Caribbean continues to have immense development potential, which warrants unity, cooperation, coordination and consensus among the States, and therefore expressed that the Dominican Republic has the commitment and desire to continue its active collaboration with CLAC, always adhering to transparency and integrity, in its task of strengthening the development of civil aviation in the region.
“This high level of commitment from the Dominican Republic reflects the commitment of the current government, headed by President Luis Abinader, to civil aviation,” said Marte Piantini.
The Executive Committee of the Latin American Civil Aviation Commission (CLAC) was formed as follows: Guatemala (Presidency), Dominican Republic (First Vice-Presidency), Chile (Second Vice-Presidency), Brazil (Third Vice-Presidency) and Costa Rica (Fourth Vice-Presidency).
