Irish site to make aviation more plain

10-06-2004

by Martin Lynch

Ireland has won a key aviation contract to create and host the world's first Web site for registering financial interests in aircraft.

Beating off rivals from Canada, Singapore and Spain, Shannon-based Aviareto was awarded the contract to establish the International Registry of Aircraft Assets by the International Civil Aviation Organization (ICAO). The Aviareto consortium was set up specifically to pitch for the business by Enterprise Ireland, SITA Ireland and PA Consulting.

The ICAO, part of the UN, has been trying for almost a decade to create a secure, international legal framework that will help facilitate the financing and insuring of mobile assets, such as planes, engines and helicopters. Many planes in use today are either leased to airlines or owned by a combination of the airline and numerous lending institutions. It is not unusual for a single plane to be part-owned and financed by many different institutions.

The International Registry will allow each party to register their aviation interests, creating a clearer picture of exactly who owns what. Because the ownership of assets will be much more transparent, the risk to insurance firms will decrease, and they are expected to reduce their rates accordingly. The International Air Transport Association (IATA) reckons that this could result in savings for the aviation industry of USD5 billion each year.

Security will be high on the list of priorities for the new Web site, which, under the terms of the contract, must be built and in operation by the end of the year. Digital signatures and authentication services will be used to confirm users' identities. Software from SITA, the aviation software specialists, will be used in the design. The service will be run from Shannon but it will be mirrored at multiple sites around Ireland for back-up and redundancy purposes.

"Security is paramount and there will be multiple layers to protect the information," said Colm Reilly, director, PA Consulting, and leader of the Aviareto bid. "This has never been done before in the industry but it should reduce a lot of risk for financial institutions and save the airline industry billions of dollars."

"We will be outsourcing all of the software development and the hosting of the site -- partners have been chosen but contracts just need to be finalised," he added.

Commenting on the deal, Gerry Murphy, executive director, Enterprise Ireland, said "The International Registry is a strategic high-profile venture for the global aviation industry... Based in Shannon, it will benefit from a concentration of other international Irish aviation activities and further serve to underpin associated industries such as the aircraft leasing industry where Ireland is a leading player."