A general assembly highlight this year will be the presentation of a vision for air transportation in Europe. While ERA general manager Mike Ambrose declined to provide an early outline of the vision, he noted that the blueprint will suggest areas in which the industry could work with European regulators to improve the safety and performance of airlines.

One feature in the proposed blueprint is the creation of a European version of the U.S. National Transportation Safety Board to investigate accidents. This board, he said, could start with air transport and be expanded to other transportation modes and "even all commercial enterprises."

Some national boards are recognized worldwide for excellent investigation skills while others are plagued with politics, Ambrose said. The new agency would be staffed based on skills and not structured to get a representative sampling from the member states.

Another element of the plan will be an effort to secure equal treatment for the aviation sector. Last year Ambrose called attention to the $39 billion subsidy that the railroads received from individual governments (CRAN, Sept. 29, 2003). When the European Commission issued its 2004 report, it failed to report on the railway subsidy. "Only a lawyer with a twisted brain could understand the reason for not publishing it," Ambrose said of the explanation.