GAMA Statement on the UK’s Brexit White Paper

Brussels, Belgium – The General Aviation Manufacturers Association (GAMA) today issued a statement about the UK government’s white paper on the future relationship between the United Kingdom and the European Union.

“We hope this white paper will be a catalyst for accelerating the UK government’s negotiations with the European Union. The paper provides long-awaited clarity that the UK wishes to continue to be a part of the European Aviation Safety Agency (EASA), which would minimise regulatory barriers for industry whilst maintaining high levels of aviation safety across Europe. The paper’s proposals on the Single Market for Goods and Customs arrangements also offer some options to avoid disruption to the supply chain of aircraft parts that cross the Channel every day, which any new tariffs, customs or compliance checks would cause.

“It remains to be seen how these proposals will play out during the Brexit negotiations. There are several questions that remain unanswered, including the movement of aviation personnel such as pilots and maintenance technicians between the UK and EU-27, as well as how business aviation operations and services may be impacted.

“With less than nine months until the UK’s exit from the EU, there is little time for both sides to reach agreement on key issues for our sector, such as aviation safety oversight, customs arrangements and environmental standards.

“Companies are already enacting contingency plans for next March because they cannot wait for the outcome of these negotiations to plan business operations for 2019 and beyond. We reiterate our call to permit EASA and the UK Civil Aviation Authority to engage in dialogue with industry to make the necessary preparations for a no-deal outcome.”

For additional information, please contact Sarah McCann, GAMA Director of Communications, at +1 (202) 637-1375 or smccann@gama.aero.

GAMA is an international trade association representing over 100 of the world's leading manufacturers of general aviation airplanes and rotorcraft, engines, avionics, components and related services. GAMA's members also operate repair stations, fixed based operations, pilot and maintenance training facilities and manage fleets of aircraft. For more information, visit GAMA's website at www.GAMA.aero.