Global aviation leaders unite at ICCAIA 2025 to chart a sustainable flightpath

The inaugural in-person ICCAIA Annual General Meeting and Conference 2025 concluded in Montreal last week, uniting over 150 global aerospace leaders who together reaffirmed their commitment to shaping a safer, greener, and more resilient aviation future. The event highlighted the International Coordinating Council of Aerospace Industries Associations’ (ICCAIA) critical role as a bridge between industry and the International Civil Aviation Organisation (ICAO).

ICCAIA serves as the global voice of the aerospace manufacturing industry, working closely with the ICAO to shape policies that prioritise safety, sustainability, and innovation in aviation. As the European representative within ICCAIA, ASD’s leadership highlights Europe’s commitment to these global objectives, ensuring collaboration across regions to tackle critical challenges in aviation.

Priorities for progress

At the heart of the conference lay a set of pressing priorities, each reflecting the delicate balance between ambition and pragmatism that defines modern aviation. Foremost among these was the pursuit of safety advancements, driven by cutting-edge technologies designed to mitigate risks in an increasingly complex airspace. Delegates emphasised that innovation here is non-negotiable – a prerequisite for maintaining public trust as passenger numbers rebound and new vehicle types, such as advanced air mobility (AAM) systems, enter the fray.

Equally critical is the industry’s long-term climate mandate: achieving net-zero carbon emissions by 2050. Central to this ambition is the rapid scaling of sustainable aviation fuels (SAF), with a near-term target of ensuring all aircraft are fully compatible with 100% SAF by 2030. This transition, participants acknowledged, demands not just regulatory alignment but a staggering $15 billion in annual collective investments into green technologies – a figure that underscores the sector’s resolve to decarbonise without compromising growth.

Yet progress hinges on navigating a web of interconnected challenges. Supply chain fragility, exacerbated by regional conflicts and post-pandemic bottlenecks, threatens to delay key projects. Meanwhile, chronic workforce shortages loom as a structural risk, prompting calls for urgent collaboration between governments and industry to attract, train, and retain talent. Even technological leaps face headwinds: the rise of GNSS radio frequency interference, for instance, has emerged as a significant danger, jeopardising navigation systems vital to modern aviation.

Concurrent with these ambitions is the need to future-proof the sector through digitalisation and automation. Artificial intelligence, delegates argued, could revolutionise everything from predictive maintenance to air traffic management – a potential game-changer in boosting efficiency and slashing emissions. But such advances, they cautioned, must be underpinned by global standards to prevent fragmentation.

Global collaboration

Vincent De Vroey, ASD’s Civil Aviation Director, hailed the conference as a testament to global collaboration: “ICCAIA is playing a key role as the voice of the global aerospace industry towards ICAO. European industry, through ASD, is actively contributing to global discussions to enable the deployment of European technology on the global market.” He highlighted the global profile of ICCAIA members –  the US Aerospace Industries Association (AIA), AIAC (Canada), AAIB (Brazil), SJAC (Japan), and associate members from Malaysia, Singapore, China, and FEMIA (Mexico).

The conference also marked the transition of ICCAIA’s chairmanship to Jan Pie, ASD Secretary General, underlining the council’s tradition of alternating leadership between Europe and North America. 

In the complex landscape of global aviation, ICCAIA’s role as a convener shone through at the conference. The council’s ability to align voices – manufacturers, regulators, and operators – on shared goals shows the way forward: one where competitiveness coexists with collaboration, and where the industry’s environmental and operational imperatives converge.

Reflecting on the conference, Vincent De Vroey said: “International civil aviation will continue to be successful thanks to this very good cooperation with our global partners.”