Date of publication: 21 February 2013
Source: UNIAN
PPR (Prior Permission Required) flight permit system hampers the development of business aviation in Ukraine, while economies with developed business aviation markets have a notification-only system in place, Roman Marchenko, Senior Partner at Ilyashev & Partners, commented to UNIAN.
«In the United States, the owner of a private aircraft must notify the authorities of the flight. That’s all. Of course there are altitude restriction and no flying over certain areas like large airports. In Ukraine, although there was some easement of procedures, there is still a permit-only procedure. This is a key factor hampering the development of business aviation», he said.
In addition, Mr. Marchenko noted that the bureaucratic barriers that stand in the way of business aviation also hamper the development of small airports.
«In the US, private flights rarely use major airports like Boryspil or Zhuliany in Ukraine. Basically, they fly from smaller airfields, which is easier in terms of formalities, more costs-effective and convenient. We do have such airports: examples include Gostomel, Chaika and others. But business aviation generally does not use them – last but not least due to the permission procedures», he said.
At the same time, Mr. Marchenko noted, «the main factor hampering the development of business aviation is not legislation, it’s the matter of economics».
«General aviation will not feed on the wealthiest of us – they fly private jets anyway. There should be more well-doing citizens, a rich middle class. There is none, hence there is no demand for general aviation services and no pressure on the government to simplify these procedures», he said.
As was previously reported by UNIAN, Kyiv air zone hosts ca. 11,00 business aviation flights a year. Both Kyiv-Zhuliany and Boryspil airports account for about a half of all flights.