Témoignages

Greenpeace exposes need for greater control of Indian Ocean fishing fleets

2013-05-03T10:43:57Z

Indian Ocean Tuna Commission (IOTC) members are failing to control fishing fleets and prevent illegal fishing and need to impose stricter controls to protect tuna stocks, Greenpeace International said on Friday.

The Greenpeace ship Esperanza has been documenting fishing activities in the Indian Ocean since March, observing fishing and transfers of fish at sea and exposing suspected illegal fishing by Sri Lankan boats in the protected Chagos waters. This follows an expedition to the Indian Ocean with the Greenpeace flagship Rainbow Warrior last year [1].

Greenpeace International is presenting the findings from its ship expeditions to the Committee on Compliance of the Indian Ocean Tuna Commission currently meeting in Mauritius ahead of a full IOTC meeting next week [2].

"The IOTC is failing to control fishing fleets and to prevent and combat illegal fishing. The most effective measure that the IOTC members meeting in Mauritius can adopt is to ban all transshipments of fish at sea," said Sari Tolvanen, Greenpeace International oceans campaigner in Mauritius.

"Only by making the vessels come to port can authorities adequately inspect vessels and the fish they catch. This would also bring additional income for coastal states running port facilities."

On March 24, the activists aboard the Esperanza found eight Sri Lankan fishing vessels inside the protected Chagos waters. These vessels are suspected of fishing illegally and Greenpeace International has reported the incidents to the relevant governments and the IOTC. [3]

These findings come in addition to the results of Greenpeace's 2012 expedition in the region, published in February 2013, and where several cases of illegal fishing were documented, including five cases involving Sri Lankan vessels.

"Sri Lanka needs to clampdown on the illegal activities of its sprawling fleet and to stop the entry of illegally caught fish into the country or its seafood industry risks losing its access to lucrative foreign markets," Tolvanen added. [4]

On April 25 and 28, the activists also observed transfers of fish in international waters just outside the Mauritius Exclusive Economic Zone (EEZ) from small long line vessels. One of the fishing vessels did not have any fishing gear raising suspicion it acts as an unregulated fish transfer vessel between the fleets. This operation could be used to hide the illegal origin of the fish [5].

Transfers of fish at sea are considered one of the main laundering mechanisms for illegally caught fish and unreported catches. The region's tuna stocks hang in the balance as fishing efforts intensify and extra capacity is needed for monitoring and control. The albacore fishery is especially suffering.

Greenpeace is campaigning for a more sustainable fishing industry and a global network of fully protected marine reserves at sea, both necessary steps to creating healthy, living oceans for future generations.

[1] http://www.greenpeace.org/international/en/publications/Campaign-reports/Oceans-Reports/Ocean-Expeditions-2012/

[2] http://www.iotc.org/English/meetings/comm/COCcurrent.php

[3] www.greenpeace.org/international/Global/international/briefings/oceans/2013/Greenpeace-IUU-report-2013-Chagos-EEZ.pdf

[4] The large number of Sri Lankan vessels using destructive fishing gear such as driftnets are especially concerning as these vessels appear to target the Chagos marine reserve and the Maldives shark sanctuary. Protected and endangered shark species have been found on board Sri Lankan boats and landed in Sri Lanka itself.

[5] www.mrag.co.uk/Documents/ExtentGlobalIllegalFishing.pdf

Seychelles marks its presence in La Reunion

2011-12-16T13:38:32Z

A Seychelles delegation led by the island's Minister for Internal Affairs, Transport and the Environment, Mr Joel Morgan returned to the Seychelles after a successful working visit in La Reunion.

Alain St.Ange, CEO of the Seychelles Tourism Board, with the Board's Senior Marketing Executive, Sharen Venus-Tomking and Marketing Executive Juliette Albert formed part of the Minister's Delegation to the sister island of La Reunion.

Addressing the Seychelles Evening at the Creolia Hotel in St. Denis, Minister Joel Morgan said that Seychelles and La Reunion were more than only neighbors. “Seychelles and La Reunion are linked by history with many Seychellois having transited in La Reunion before settling in Seychelles then part of the French Territories” Minister Morgan said.

Minister Morgan also spoke about his meeting with the La Reunion Authorities and the French Minister on a working mission in La Reunion.

Alain St.Ange, the CEO of the Seychelles Tourism Board said when he took to the floor that he wanted to say thank you to La Reunion, to the Tour Operators, Travel Agents, and to the Press for their support of Seychelles. “We have this year doubled our visitor arrival numbers from La Reunion and this is because of your continued support. We also thank Mr Gerard Etheve and his Team at Air Austral for standing by Seychelles” Alain St.Ange said.

The evening saw the Waki Band of La Reunion perform and as well as a Fashion Show before the presentation of Air tickets and holiday packages for two couples to holiday in Seychelles following a game show on the popular La Reunion Radio Station.

The Seychelles Delegation met with their La Reunion counterparts led by Pascal Viroleau, the Director of the IRT (La Reunion's Tourism) and also hosted a Seychelles thank you evening for the La Reunion Tourism Trade and Press. The Seychelles Delegation also met and discussed cooperation between the two Vanilla Islands of the Indian Ocean with Mr Didier Robert, the President of the La Reunion Region.

Reunion Island in the World Heritage following IUCN's recommendation

2010-08-03T12:39:21Z

Following IUCN's recommendations, the landscapes of France's La Reunion Island, Russia's Siberian Putorana Plateau and the Phoenix Islands Protected Areas of Kiribati have been added to the List of Natural World Heritage sites by UNESCO. The Committee also decided to add Danxia (China) to the List.

Two other natural sites were extended upon IUCN's advice: Monte San Giorgio, from Switzerland to Italy, and Pirin National Park in Bulgaria.

Reunion Island contains the most significant remaining natural habitats for the conservation of terrestrial biodiversity in the Mascarene Island Archipelago, including a range of rare forest type. Towering volcanoes, including steep rock walls and natural amphitheatres, as well as deep forested gorges and escarpments form dramatic scenery of striking beauty.

“La Reunion contains an impressive mosaic of dramatic landscapes and very valuable ecosystems and also serves as a last refuge for the many threatened and endangered species on the entire Mascarene Archipelago,” says Tim Badman, Head of IUCN's World Heritage Programme. “Controlling alien invasive species will be an ongoing challenge in the management of this property."

Russia's Putorana Plateau represents one of the only centres of plant species richness in the Arctic. The striking natural beauty of Putorana Plateau includes more than 25,000 fjord-like lakes, dozens of deep canyons, rivers and creeks, and thousands of waterfalls.

“The combination of extraordinary landscape diversity, remoteness and naturalness makes the Putorana Plateau one of the truly wild places remaining in the Arctic at a time of increasing pressure on this fascinating region,” says Badman. “World Heritage status not only provides a strong and permanent conservation framework but there's a great opportunity to better understand the impacts of climate change in large undisturbed arctic ecosystems.”

Kiribati's Phoenix Islands Protected Area is one of the largest marine environments in the world that has remained intact thanks to its remoteness.

“The Phoenix Island's exceptionally healthy species of fish, turtles and its bleaching-resistant corals deserve the highest degree of protection,” says Tilman Jaeger, IUCN World Heritage Project Management Officer. “Continued international support to Kiribati for the management of the site will be vital to guarantee its conservation.”

Monte San Giorgio is the single best known fossil record of marine life in the Triassic period (245-230 million years ago) and comprises important remains of life on land as well. Vast amounts and diversity of fossils, many exceptionally complete and detailed, have been excavated in Monte San Giorgio.

“Monte San Giorgio is an exceptional place for paleontological research,” says Jaeger. “This extension into Italy adds new value to the existing Swiss area, and reinforces this World Heritage Site as the principal global point of reference for future discoveries of marine Triassic remains.”

An area of exceptional beauty, the diverse mountain landscapes of Pirin National Park contain a number of important endemic and relict species.

“Pirin is a wonderful example of a diverse mountain landscape,” adds Jaeger. "There is a need to balance tourism and conservation and our advice is a clear message that there are ways to achieve this balance but also that some forms of tourism development are incompatible with World Heritage status.”

Reunion Island : At the Crossroads of Civilizations

2010-03-29T10:37:48Z

The MCUR project is threatened to be cancelled by the newly elected president of Reunion Island Regional Council, Didier Robert, member of Nicolas Sarkozy's political party. Everybody will be extremely surprised that the government of the French Republic would support such a decision. Will a member of the Nicolas Sarkozy's political party undermine the cultural prestige of France? To get an idea of the international significance of the project, following an intervention by Paul Vergès, the former president of Reunion Island Regional Council, April 21, 2009

I wish to concentrate on one issue among all those of major importance and sketch the topics that would be debated. It seems to me that when we consider what concrete actions should be taken in the next twenty years, we must look at the changes which will affect our country, our population and the countries surrounding us. On that basis, it is all too clear that the problem we will have to confront will be population growth. It is so common nowadays to hear : “In 2025 the island's population will be one million” even if the figure will be reached in 2026 or 2027. Be as it may, in a quarter of a century or so, we will be one million. This fact requires that land management, export and environment preservation policies be designed with, always in mind, the objective of sustainable development.

To put population growth in perspective, let us look at the countries surrounding us where the changes will be even more dramatic : when the population on Reunion Island will reach 1 million, the Mauritian population will be about 1.2 million, Madagascar 30 million and Tanzania about 40 million. When we compare the demographic transitions which will take place in Latin America, Africa and Asia, the countries of the Indian Ocean Rim will experience the highest demographic increase. Three billion of the forthcoming 8 billion world's population will live in the countries surrounding the Indian Ocean. Our own situation cannot be but affected. The European Union will then include 25 or 30 countries and the old prophecy of “Europe from the Atlantic to the Ural ” may come true. In our region, the SADC, currently confronted with serious problems, will consolidate its unity. I suggest that we ponder on some observers' and researchers' attempts at figuring out what the future will be -not that I consider them to be among the greatest thinkers— but let me quote some of them. Francis Fukuyama's (in)famous phrase “This is the end of history and the last man” is meant to imply that the liberal model would inevitably develop, overcome all obstacles, and that history will come to an end. Samuel Huntington has claimed that “the 21st century will be the century of a struggle between civilisations and clashes between cultures,” the source of conflict and confrontation-including war. We do not know what lies in store for us in the future, but we do know that major events will take place in the Indian Ocean. The majority of Muslims will inhabit the countries bordering the Indian Ocean, the centre of gravity of Islam will drift towards South-East Asia, more precisely Indonesia.

We are on Reunion Island at the crossroads of all those transformations. Our society does not yet have a cohesion and unity considering its history of centuries of brutality - slavery and colonialism-along with processes of creolisation and hybridisation of incoming communities. We are right in the midst of a future cultural and religious maelstrom.

I think that no sustainable development can be effective if it is not driven and supported by a vision and by political resolve-and this, when you come to think of it, is a cultural challenge. Our history is not a very old history. Our common identity is still in the making. We can be fairly optimistic when we see that during the three centuries of our existence all the waves of (forced or not) immigrations have merged and followed a convergent route. But we do not have the cohesion that old nations have achieved, and our society is still criss-crossed by social and cultural divisions, making the cohesion of our social fabric all but certain.

On that basis, it seems to me that we must open a dialogue with our neighbours, and enter a process of give and take of ideas taking into account our environment. It is urgent that we do so because whatever the qualities and capacities of the Reunionnais people, our island can hardly accommodate more than one million inhabitants, in a world that will have a population of 8 or 10 billion.

Cultural difference, social cohesion and sustainable development

Given the present and forthcoming conflicts, be they cultural, religious or other, the problem is for us to ensure sustainable development and, as far as our own population is concerned, to live on as a unified society but maintaining its diversity. During a century of barbarity and strife rarely matched before, the 20th century, some progress was made through the development of new ideas and concepts. In that respect, the June 1992 Rio Conference, which highlighted the need of protecting biodiversity, was a considerable cultural breakthrough. It put human being and humankind right within the frame of the whole planet's environment, a planet which existed before the human race appeared and will probably survive the extinction of humankind. The Rio Conference underscored the idea that our environment is the result of a long evolution process ; a process created through a complex balance between the realm of plants and the realm of animals, to which we belong, that human activity must not jeopardize what has been in existence for hundreds, thousands or millions of years, and that we must resist committing the crime of destroying such or such species and cloning up plant and animal biodiversity as we wish, simply because we have the means to do so. Let evolution operate, but let us not destroy one single species : we have no idea what will emerge in the future, what role evolution will play in our environment or what use we can put science to-in the making of medical drugs for instance. However, what struck me most in the Rio Conference was that all the world leaders and all those who are fighting for the protection of the environment did manage to get together and push forward the concept of sustainable development, a remarkable progress in the history of humankind — even if the following years have shown what difficulties we are confronted with when it comes to preserving plant and animal biodiversity —, but that they never thought of defending cultural diversity.

I do agree that it is imperative, essential and vital to save dolphins, sea-lions, or such and such animal species : it shows that man is aware of the importance of preserving environment so as to hand it down to future generations in the best possible state. But why cannot we also turn our attention on artistic creation and on culture-the result of social life and relations and the individual's permanent attempt to conceive and express the reasons of its existence, origin and destiny ? Why shouldn't traditions, tales, music, dance, beliefs, religions, in other words all forms of human-made expressions, be protected just as much as an animal species ? Entire groups of people have been erased, and the civilisations and cultures of many are endangered. Now that culture is understood to be part of economic development, are we going to give free rein to the liberal globalisation of trade and markets ? Are we going to let a standard, uniform way of life spread when diversity is an asset and the sign of complexity and creativity ? I claim that we must refuse uniformity, which is the main danger of liberal globalisation and promote a form of humanism and universality, that is diversity in each and every part of the world, because this is where the substance of human creativity lies.

The “Maison des Civilisations et de l'Unité Réunionnaise” : a factor of social cohesion

A question arises : How can we Reunionnais, a small people which has always been encouraged to imitate the West, can promote, enrich, understand and explore what some call their “roots” yet on the basis of our own cultural differences ? If we can demonstrate that our cultural diversity strengthens our society instead of pulling it apart, that it is a binding force for dialogue and cohesion, that we respect others as equals and acknowledge the originality of each respective contribution, then we can talk of a Reunionnais miracle : we will have managed to creolize all the incoming values without being assimilated by any one of them, whereas the general tendency is to try to assimilate groups different from one's own and make them fit into one's own cultural values.

I think that this is Reunion Island's contribution to the world. What Reunion Island is saying to the world is that on a 2,500 sq km territory and over three centuries, a people has managed to integrate different cultures through creolization, without their differences becoming antagonistic forces and tearing our society apart. We have often been on the brink of explosion, but we have so far managed to reconcile our differences through pragmatic solutions-and we are constantly striving to do so. This is the very foundation of our project of a “Maison des Civilisations. ” Its very title means that all the ancestors of groups which came from various continents and belonged to diverse civilisations, be they from Africa, Madagascar, Europe, Dravidian and Moslem India, with all the cultural aspects attached to them will be given recognition. By referring to the notion of “heritage,” we enhance the value of those civilisations while situating them all on an equal footing.

Yet, it is not simply a “Maison des Civilisations,” it is a “Maison des Civilisations et de l'Unité Réunionnaise.” We wish to operate a recognition and a reinterpretation of the civilisations our ancestors belonged to and to stress the necessity to strive for unity and solidarity through and beyond the contradictions brought by our forebears. I am not naïve and I know perfectly well that this island has experienced suffering, oppression, conflict and injustice throughout its history. But history has also shown that we have always sought to reach hybridity and unity. And I think that if we are content with taking mere budgetary measures, if we only talk of rates, charges, financial planning and the like, we will not succeed. We may improve our situation on the material level, but we will make no progress in strengthening the connections between the inhabitants of Reunion Island. Faced with the impending conflicts that the Indian Ocean region will witness tomorrow, unity is our most precious asset.

Every day we see conflicts in the making, and plenty more are in store. This, in my opinion, makes it just as essential for us to set up a “Maison des Civilisations et de l'Unité Réunonnaise” as to achieve harmonious land management. Let us find amity in our heads also. Let us speak a common language, share a common vocabulary, put a common meaning in words and concepts, and we will have the pre-requisite for sustainable development, social cohesion rooted in and reinforced by a commonwealth of values built by ourselves and nurtured by all the civilisations our population originates from.

Maison des civilisations et de l'unité réunionnaise : Petition to Prime Minister of the French Republic

2010-03-29T09:44:00Z

“Sir, We have learned that the MCUR project is threatened to be cancelled by the newly elected president of Reunion Island Regional Council. We will be extremely surprised that the government of the French Republic would support such a decision. Cultural centers are, in our times, sites of debates, exchanges, mixing, multiculturalism and citizenship.

We know the work of the scientific and cultural team of the MCUR led by Françoise Vergès, the quality of its work, its objectivity, its openness to new cultural forms. It has been instrumental for the inscription of maloya to the World Intangible Heritage list. We cannot believe that, when everywhere cultural center are proving to be sites of creativity, of economic development, of research, you will allow the MCUR to be cancelled and that you will agree to the denial of twenty young Reunionnese's work and commitment.

Sincerely yours."

http://soutienmcur.blogspot.com/

Airbus A380 : passengers opinions

2009-11-20T07:52:39Z

More than 2.5 million passengers have already travelled in the the double-deck, wide-bodied cabin cabin. In four years, the A380 will take off from Reunion Island. In Dubaï Air Show 2009, Air Austral ordered two high-density Airbus A380s that can seat up to 840 passengers. If you have traveled aboard the superjumbo, if you're among the 2.5 million passengers, we invited you to share your experience.

Air Austral ordered two all-economy versions of the giant A380 passenger plane at the Dubai Air Show. Each plane will carry 840 passengers on flights from La Reunion Island in the Indian Ocean to Paris.

Soon, Reunionneses will travel in the double-deck superjumbo. Less noise ? More comfortable seat ? Fill this form and share your experience.

(Pictures from an A380 built for testing and demonstration purposes, Roland-Garros Airport, Reunion Island)

AIRBUS A380 : Air Austral confirms two 840-seat airplanes for tickets 30% cheaper

Manuel Marchal — 2009-11-18T21:22:00Z

Yesterday at Dubai Airshow, Air Austral has confirmed the order for two Airbus A380s single-class, capable of carrying over 800 passengers. Never in the history of aviation, airline travel has made as many passengers as in one flight. This aircraft type will bring down the prices of airline tickets by 30% for long-haul flight. It's a new era for La Reunion, and for the democratization of air travel.

30% cheaper, it will be possible for Reunionnese through Reunionnese's work. Yesterday, these Réunionnese that have been the event of the Dubai International Exhibition. It is indeed a reunionnese company that is the first to announce an order for Airbus A380s this year, and it is a very special version that will be delivered.

Indeed, the two aircrafts will be operated by a subsidiary of Air Austral; there will have only a single class. Thus, they will carry more than 800 passengers instead of the usual 525-535, and allow passengers to qualify for fares 30% cheaper.

The origin of this project is a challenge, the "continuité territoriale". As reiterated last week Gerard Etheve, CEO of Air Austral, the Airbus A380 is not only an airplane which allows these passengers to take showers on board, but it is also a tool capable of producing airline low cost tickets. Because the A380 is able to carry over 800 passengers in a single class, and because it features the latest technology, the Airbus A380 operating the lowest cost per passenger. For example, fuel consumption is less than 3 liters per 100 kilometers per passenger.

30% cheaper

This project meets the definition of partnership: all parties are progressing. Air Austral is progressing, as these aircrafts will help strengthen the company by opening more our island on the world. Airbus is progressing well because it now has in its catalog a model that may offer tickets 30% cheaper.

It is through this that the model ordered by Air Austral will reduce prices by 30%, which opens a new stage in the democratization of air travel. This project will be definitely real with the delivery of the first plane, by the beginning of 2014. With the commissioning of the second aircraft before the end of 2014, passengers will fly daily from La Reunion on board of A380.

Planes producing cheap tickets will burst traffic

Already, it appears that the solution proposed by Air Austral interests other countries. In addition to two aircrafts ordered, an option has been taken on two other A380s. According to AFP, Gerard Etheve gave the following explanation: "The two aircrafts will be optional for either service or the Caribbean where the traffic would grow at Reunion Island. We are confident that planes producing cheap tickets will burst traffic".

It should be noted that according to Airbus forecasts, 1729 jumbo jets could be delivered over the next 20 years, including 771 in Asia-Oceania, where are living the most populous nation. The demand for air travel will increase, and the project resulting from the partnership between Air Austral and Airbus responds to countries with high population density, and that purchasing power is a concern as essential to Reunion Island.

Manuel Marchal

AIRBUS A380 : Air Austral signs firm order for two single class aircrafts

2009-11-17T11:56:14Z

Thanks to Air Austral and Airbus A380, «we'll enter a new era in terms of economic air travel». The airline, based in Saint Denis, La Réunion, has ordered two A380s in a single-class configuration. Powered by Engine Alliance engines and seating around 840 passengers, the aircraft will be operated on the high-density route from La Réunion to Paris, a long-haul flight. This version is the lowest fuel cost and emissions per passenger of any aircraft available today, said the Airbus Chief Operating Officer Customers, John Leahy. Following, an Airbus press release:

Air Austral, an airline based in Reunion Island, has ordered two A380 in a single-class configuration. Long-haul and low-cost, it will be possible with the aircraft ordered by Air Austral: two A380s in a single-class configuration.

“The A380 will offer the best comfort of any aircraft in a high density configuration. With its spacious and extremely quiet cabins, we'll enter a new era in terms of economic air travel.” said Gérard Ethève, CEO of Air Austral.

“Air Austral opens a new chapter for A380 operations. It will operate the A380 with the lowest fuel cost and emissions per passenger of any aircraft available today” said John Leahy, Airbus Chief Operating Officer Customers. “The in-service experience has shown just how efficient the A380 really is, and this order from Air Austral demonstrates new ways of benefiting from that efficiency”.

Being greener, cleaner, quieter and smarter, the A380 is already setting new standards for air transport and the environment. In addition to offering unequalled levels of passenger comfort, space and quietness in the cabin, the A380 has unmatched levels of operating costs and fuel efficiency, consuming generally less than three litres per passenger per 100 kilometres. With the Air Austral configuration, fuel consumption levels below two litres per passenger per 100 kilometres can be expected.

The A380 not only complies with today's noise limits, it is also significantly quieter than any other large aircraft flying today. With a range of 8 200 nm / 15 200 km, and seating 525 passengers in a standard three-class layout while being much more eco-efficient, the A380 is the ideal equipment to alleviate traffic congestion at busy airports, while coping with growth.

20 A380s are in service with four customers, connecting four continents on 13 major international routes. The in-service A380 fleet has accumulated over 82,000 revenue flight hours in over 8,700 commercial flights. Over 3 million passengers have already enjoyed flying the A380.

Orders for the aircraft stand at 202 from 17 customers.

Air Austral to buy two A380s with 840 seats

2009-11-16T14:06:09Z

Air Austral will be the first airline to fly planes carrying over 800 passengers. The order will be confirmed at Dubai Airshow 2009, said industry sources.

Air Austral, based in Reunion island, will become the first airline to fly planes carrying over 840 people after confirming an order for two Airbus A380 superjumbos later on Monday, industry sources said according to Reuters.

The sources said a provisional order for two of the European planes worth some $650 million at list prices, placed in January, would was expected to be firmed up at the Dubai event.

Airbus declined to comment.

Air Austral is the first airline to order a single-class version of the world's largest airliner, which is capable of carrying 840 passengers when contains same seats.

The 200 aircraft sold so far have all been ordered in their standard configuration of 525 seats and airlines have in practice opted for fewer seats by making more room for premium passengers.

But A380 is not only for people who want to take a shower in the air, this plane is able to contribute to a significantly lower price, 30% less than the price of a long-haul flight .

Airbus A380 landing at Reunion Island

2009-11-16T10:16:17Z

15 January 2009: the reunionnese airline Air Austral has signed a Memorandum of Understanding with Airbus for the purchase of two A380s in a single-class configuration.
11 novembre 2009, after a long flight from Europe, Airbus A380 appears in the blue sky over Saint-Denis, country's main city of Reunion Island, in the south of Indian Ocean. The plane flied around the island and landed at Roland-Garros Airport at 7:45 am. Thousands peoples were waiting for this moment with impatience. In a press release, Airbus explain the purpose of this test of Airport compatibility.

Today, more than 90 airports around the world have already welcomed the A380. Throughout 2009 an increasing number of airports have handled scheduled A380 passenger services as the customer airline in-service fleet grows. Full airport compatibility has always been a key design driver for Airbus‘ all-new double-decker.

Since the very beginning of the A3XX concept phase in 1996 the European aircraft manufacturer has established a continuous dialogue with regulators, airports, airlines, ground handlers and trade associations. The overall objective to make this aircraft compliant with the typical airport environment has been fully met. The A380 has demonstrated that it can be integrated with ease into existing airport facilities.

As with any aircraft, the A380 is subject to local Aviation-Authority approvals. However, the greener, cleaner, quieter and smarter eco-efficient airliner has been demonstrated to be fully compatible with most of the world's airport infrastructure and has received approval to operate on runways with a width of 45 metres (150 ft) or more (most of the world's airports have 45m runways as standard width). In addition, the 20-wheel main landing gear arrangement results in lower runway and taxiway pavement strength requirements than other in-service or proposed aircraft. With its larger wingspan and wing area, greater lift is provided and as a result the A380 also requires less runway length to take off and to land than the former largest aircraft.

Servicing the A380 has minimal impact on current facilities because its main deck and lower deck doors and its ground servicing connection points are at a similar height to those of other large aircraft. Overall, 20 out of 22 servicing vehicles are the same as those used generally today. The majority of cabin servicing is to the main deck, however a catering vehicle offering direct access to the upper deck can be used in most situations to even further optimize catering times. Due to its higher weight, a more capable tow tractor is also recommended. These two new vehicle types, already in service for the A380 and compatible with other widebody aircraft, are available from several manufacturers.

Extensive airport compatibility tests have been backed up by in-service experience that demonstrates that despite the impressive size of the A380, passenger boarding does not take longer than for other large aircraft in its category and - considering its greater capacity - it will be markedly more efficient than its rivals.

The A380's extra-wide main stairs allow boarding of passengers through the first two main deck doors, thus enabling swift turnarounds without any operational need for an upper deck passenger boarding bridge. However, A380 operators can benefit from the unique differentiation which upper deck access affords and many airports are offering this feature at their A380-capable gates.

Thanks to its operationally friendly design and the joint work with the ground handling community, the A380‘s turnaround time has been measured and validated at 90 minutes (as predicted) during full scale exercises with customer airlines and in commercial service. This means the A380 is fully in line with other large aircraft flying today, and because it carries 40 per cent more passengers per movement than the competition, it offers a better and more efficient use of airport resources such as gates and slots, whilst at the same time generating only half the noise on take off and landing.

An A380 can therefore replace older and smaller wide-body aircraft while providing substantial economic and environmental benefits, thereby being part of the solution to achieving sustainable air transport growth.