New CASA PNG board promises to continue aviation reform

By Andrew Curran.

The new board of Papua New Guinea’s Civil Aviation Safety Authority will push for greater accountability and tighter compliance as part of a broader goal to turn the agency into one of the region’s leading aviation safety regulators.

The 13-person board was sworn in by Civil Aviation Minister Wake Goi in Port Moresby on May 5, 2026.

Newly appointed chairman Taunao Vai said he would work to uphold good governance, integrity and accountability, while ensuring the other directors did the same.

Among the broader board, Peter Pato was appointed deputy chairman, while Shelley Launa and Peter Kamong were appointed independent directors.

“The board will ensure that CASA continues to promote compliance and enhance safety and security outcomes through effective collaboration and engagement with its stakeholders,” Vai said.

Papua New Guinea putting effort into aviation safety reform

The current government has invested considerable effort into improving aviation regulation alongside its more high-profile initiatives to modernise airport infrastructure and overhaul Air Niugini’s fleet.

Vai said the Civil Aviation Safety Authority completed almost 90% of its 2025 annual audit and surveillance programme and work plan, while achieving several significant milestones, including:

• Overseeing an increase in ICAO’s Universal Safety Oversight Audit Programme Effective Implementation score for Papua New Guinea from 60.7% to 80.5%. 

          This lifted Papua New Guinea above both the Asia-Pacific regional average and            the global average effective implementation scores. 

• Addressing and closing two significant security concerns identified during an earlier ICAO audit, resulting in the country’s Universal Security Audit Programme Effective Implementation score increasing from 35.67% to 62.95%.

• Recording zero negative findings during an ISO Surveillance Audit last year.

• Securing Papua New Guinea’s formal acceptance into the Safety Management International Collaboration Group (SMS-ICG) in early 2025, making it the only Pacific Island state represented in the group.

“Papua New Guinea now has a seat at the table with the top 20 ICAO states in the world, including Singapore, the FAA, EASA, Australia and New Zealand, with ICAO as a permanent observer,” Vai said.

The new chairman also noted that Papua New Guinea resolved 70% of its open investigations last year.

Aviation incidents are generally handled by sister agency, the Accident Investigation Committee.

Other countries start to call on PNG for assistance

There are currently six active investigations into aviation incidents in Papua New Guinea. The most recent relates to a January 2026 incident at Port Moresby Airport (POM), when a Tropicair Twin Otter made an emergency landing without its nose gear deployed.

The oldest open investigation concerns an April 2025 incident involving a single-engine Cessna crop duster operated by Liddle's Aerial Spraying that impacted terrain near Madang, killing the pilot.

As Papua New Guinea strengthens its aviation oversight, other Pacific Island nations are increasingly turning to the country’s aviation agencies to investigate incidents, including last month’s engine failure and water ditching involving a Bell helicopter in the Solomon Islands.

Historically, the Solomon Islands may have sought assistance from Civil Aviation Authority of New Zealand or the Australian Transport Safety Bureau.

However, the Solomon Islands Civil Aviation Authority requested Papua New Guinea undertake the investigation.

Photo: AI-Generated.

Contact the writer: andrew@aerosouthpacific.com