In a bid for air transport to be more comfortable and enjoyable by public users, East African aviation professionals urged for more coordination among key players.

Eng. Ladislaus E. Matindi, Principal Civil Aviation Officer in EAC Secretariat, made the call yesterday during the 27th East African Consultative Meeting on Facilitation of Air Transport among EA partner states.

"We can agree on how to make air transport more comfortable, improve on communication from each country in line with the implementation of ICAO recommendations,” Matindi said.

Some of the key players mentioned in air transport that require coordination of the highest level include security, migration, customs and ground handling.

In a separate interview, Matindi said that aviation bodies should identify the bottlenecks in key players to avoid delays of passengers and aircrafts.

Participants were happy to share experiences after their tour and impressive services at Kigali International air transport, saying the services and procedures are so efficient.

Claver Bazatoha, Director Air Transport and Aviation Safety Regulation said that one of the most important service that moved participants was the migration card which is brief and clear.

Bazatoha hailed that the card has all the necessary information, and eliminated information like how many people are you travelling with.

"Some information is not necessary, it’s clear that that no one is supposed to travel on some else’s document but East African migration card carries the message how many people are you traveling with,” Bazatoha clarified.

The consultative meeting wants simplification of aircraft clearance of documents, rapid clearance of imports and export cargo to facilitate and expedite the clearing of incoming and outgoing cargo.

The East African consultative meeting started in 1993 to help member states improve on air transport facilitation.

The meeting has achieved the reduction in cases of pilferage at airports, abolition of customs clearance desk for departing passengers and improved service delivery like conveyor belts, better transit lounges and eating places.

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