Thank you, Mark [Searle]. Good afternoon, everyone. 

It’s good to be back in UAE. I was last here in 2016 for the Global Aerospace Summit. This region continues to be one of the world’s fastest-growing regions for air travel.

Dubai recently unveiled a tribute to the spirit of innovation – the Museum of the Future. I had a chance to see it this morning, and saw stunning displays of what the world might be like 50 years from now – if we see current concepts, technologies, and human skill sets develop further. 
But here’s the thing: The future is happening now. Today. What we once thought only possible in movies and cartoons is coming true. 

And while we are excited about the future, it must be one that shares the high-standard of safety that has come to define aviation today. That’s the challenge of our time: To usher in the next era of aviation safely.  

And the traveling public will expect that high standard of safety – whether they fly to and from Dubai, Mumbai, Miami or anywhere else. 

And we must achieve all of this while building a more sustainable aviation system, and one that can withstand the shocks of pandemics, or new threats, like cyberattacks.

Let me start by discussing ways to ensure safety.

We’ve seen the benefits of Safety Management Systems in driving down safety risk for commercial aviation. Now, the FAA is working on a proposed rule to require charter, commuter and air tour operators, and aircraft manufacturers, to implement SMS. 

SMS has given us significant insight into operations and the ability to spot looming risks. It has also given us mountains of data that hold the keys for us to move from a preventive safety system to a predictive safety system. 

That is our next goal: to become predictive. We’re evolving toward using advanced analytics, machine learning and artificial intelligence to yield quality, consistent streams of safety data. 

Through these tools, we will more effectively mine the safety data to connect the dots and share risk information with industry stakeholders and international partners.

We are seeing U.S. safety models – like the U.S. Commercial Aviation Safety Team and the Aviation Sharing Information and Analysis System – being implemented around the world. This will enable greater international collaboration through the sharing of safety risk information. We can take the next step by collectively harmonizing our safety analytics and metrics … and working to build a shared risk portfolio.    

And while SMS and data analysis are essential programs to have in place, it’s important to stress that a mature safety culture is what makes these programs successful.

We want to see a Just Culture and a Learning Culture of safety throughout the world – where aviation professionals can openly report unintentional mistakes and safety concerns without fear of punishment.

In a mature safety culture like this, aviation professionals feel empowered to speak up openly and honestly, and are supported for doing that by the entire organization.

This kind of open, supportive culture is essential to address pilot mental health. Our pilots and all aviation professionals should ask for help the moment they begin to experience emotional or mental health challenges. 

They should start treating the underlying problems before they become worse. And we must provide increased support to aviation professionals who ask for help. There should be no stigma, or fears, about coming forward about experiencing mental health challenges. Period.

We must also be proactive and transparent when it comes to mitigating cyber risk in aviation. Cyber threats don’t respect borders on a map and they are continuously in flux. 

The FAA values its participation in ICAO’s work to support aviation cyber resilience, and we’re working with international stakeholders to design the International Aviation Trust Framework. This effort seeks to provide confidence in the integrity of aviation-related digital information and its secure exchange across the global aviation ecosystem.

In all of the areas I’ve discussed, the FAA is eager to expand our safety collaboration and continue sharing best practices with the airlines and other aviation stakeholders.

In fact, we’re developing an ICAO course on aviation system safety … and the UAE General Civil Aviation Authority has collaborated closely with us on SMS best practices for the course. We value this partnership and look to build on it.

This kind of collaboration is essential, because this industry is changing rapidly.

And nowhere is that more present than air taxis and eVTOLS. 

We expect to certify the first of these aircraft around the 2024 timeframe, provided safety allows. And we’re looking at how we might align our certification processes and standards globally for AAM aircraft. 

With the kind of growth and innovation we continue to see, and the retirements hastened by the pandemic experience, this industry needs new people, including those with new skill sets.  

Government and industry should continue to work together, and find more creative ways to help build the future workforce, and help them develop the advanced skill sets they’ll need to match the advancements of the industry. 

We’re going to need the best people not just to help us make aviation safer, more efficient, or more innovative, but also to make it more sustainable. Earlier this month, at the ICAO’s 41st Assembly, States adopted a long term, global aspirational goal to achieve net zero emissions for international flight operations by 2050.

This outcome is a tremendous success, and a credit to both the Member States who adopted the goal, and industry who supported it. 

And now we all need to work together to achieve it. 

The Museum of the Future has many exciting ideas, but that’s what they are at the moment. Just ideas. 

Unless, we do the work to make global aviation safer, more secure, sustainable, and resilient, and also recruit a diverse and highly skilled next generation workforce. 

This conference is an opportunity to make progress in these areas. Thank you, and I look forward to working with all of you.