(C) MINISTER OF TRANSPORTATION IN DENIAL OVER EU

C O N F I D E N T I A L LUANDA 000038


EMBASSY ROME FOR TSA ANTHONY GIOVANNIELLO
DEPARTMENT FOR EEB/OTP KRISTIN GUSTAVSON AND BRIAN SILER

E.O. 12958: DECL: 01/14/2019
TAGS: AO EAIR ECON ENIV PREL
SUBJECT: (C) MINISTER OF TRANSPORTATION IN DENIAL OVER EU
AVIATION BAN

REF: 08 LUANDA 908

Classified By: Ambassador Dan Mozena for Reason 1.4 (b) and (d).


1. (C) SUMMARY: During a January 13 meeting with Ambassador
Mozena, Minister of Transport Augusto da Silva Tomas showed
himself to be in complete denial over the seriousness of the
EU ban on Angolan airlines and his country's nonconformity
with International Civil Aviation Organization (ICAO)
standards and failed to recognize the significant
shortcomings of both the national airline, TAAG, and the
civil aviation authority, INAVIC. He outlined the GRA's
plans for restructuring both, confidently stated that both
TAAG and INAVIC would pass EU and ICAO muster by June. Tomas
said Luanda's airport would be ready to pass a Transportation
and Security Administration (TSA) inspection by December of
this year. He enthusiastically welcomed Delta Airlines'
plans to start service to Luanda from the U.S. (via Cape
Verde),and said our two countries should begin negotiations
on a bilateral civil aviation agreement and on allowing TAAG
to fly to the U.S. END SUMMARY


2. (C) During his January 13 meeting with Ambassador Mozena,
Minister Tomas described GRA plans to restructure TAAG with
the ultimate goal of creating a world-class and profitable
airline. He said the GRA was working with U.S. and
Portuguese consultants to restructure INAVIC and make it a
"strong authority." Tomas appeared dismissive of TAAG's
deficient air worthiness regime and INAVIC's nonconformity
with ICAO standards, focusing most of his attention, instead,
on his descriptions of TAAG's future as a global carrier. He
noted that the current focus was to improve TAAG operations
to get it off the EU "blacklist" and "to respond to EU and
ICAO criticisms relating to safety and security." He
described GRA plans to refurbish Luanda's airport by
improving radar coverage, IT infrastructure, and passenger
terminals stating, "In the next twelve months we will do more
for that airport than has been done in the last fifty years."
He confidently stated that both TAAG and INAVIC will be ICAO
compliant by June and that Luanda's airport would be up to
TSA standards by this December. Tomas enthusiastically
welcomed Delta Airlines' plans to start in June twice-weekly
service from Atlanta to Luanda (via Cape Verde) and agreed to
meet with its delegation on January 21, to explore this
possibility.


3. (C) During the course of the conversation, Tomas made
clear that he viewed the EU ban as an insult to Angola rather
than a prudent reaction to Angola's civil aviation
shortcomings. He offered that, as a result of the EU ban,
TAAG was opening routes to Asia and the Mid East and was
seeking international partners to add even more routes and
value to TAAG's operations. He several times referred to the
fact that TAAG's 777 were new and "not in need of repair,"
and that TAAG had "wonderful U.S.-trained pilots." (NOTE:
TAAG had to use Boeing pilots to transport their new 777s
from Washington State to Angola, as it did not have any
pilots certified to fly extended twin engine operations over
the ocean.) Tomas twice referred to the ban in personal
terms complaining that the EU could "come to our house, and
yet Angola could not come to theirs due to security issues"
and that the ban was like "having a woman you refused to
marry." He implied that Angola should reciprocate against EU
carriers, and defended Angola civil aviation laws as superior
to ICAO minimums.


4. (C) In response, the Ambassador explained that the issues
surrounding INAVIC and TAAG were of great concern, and that
while the U.S. would like to have U.S.-Angola direct flights
by TAAG, it was important to first regularize INAVIC and get
TAAG off the EU blacklist. He clarified that the EU and ICAO
issues were safety related, and that they were not personal,
but that all countries had to fulfill ICAO obligations. The
Ambassador acknowledged that Angola had good civil aviation
laws, but clarified that the issue was INAVIC's complete lack
of enforcement of those laws. He urged the Minister to go to
Montreal to learn firsthand what Angola needed to do to meet
ICAO standards. The Minister said he would visit Montreal
and suggested it could be part of a multi-country visit
(including Belgium, France, and the U.S.) to drum up a
foreign partner for TAAG and to sign civil aviation accords
like the one Angola recently signed with China. The
Ambassador reiterated that the EU ban was very serious and
that Angola needed to be serious in satisfying full ICAO
standards. Tomas noted that the U.S. was powerful and had a
great deal of influence, and said he hoped the U.S. could use
that influence to help Angola with ICAO. The Ambassador made
clear that this was "not an issue of short-cuts, or
negotiations, or phone calls from powerful people," but that
"everyone must follow the rules."


5. (C) COMMENT: Unless the GRA takes its ICAO obligations
seriously and stops viewing the EU blacklisting as political
game-making, Angola is on track toward becoming an
international aviation pariah. The Ambassador sought this
meeting with Tomas in part due to concerns that the Minister
was being told (by his staff and a Portuguese aviation
advisor) that some simple short-cuts and political fixes
would result in a lifting of the EU ban. Tomas's views on
aviation clearly indicate the Minister is not yet
appreciative of the steps Angola must take to deal with this
issue. Post will continue to press the GRA to take the
necessary actions to come into compliance with its ICAO
obligations.


MOZENA