Aviation chief Saif Al Suwaidi emphasizes safety frameworks and bilateral ties as UAE-China weekly flights cross 90
BEIJING — Artificial intelligence will reshape the foundations of civil aviation, but its rollout demands binding global safety frameworks and regulatory oversight, the United Arab Emirates’ civil aviation chief said in Beijing on Friday.
Addressing delegates at the 4th China Air Transport Association (CATA) Conference, Saif Mohammed Al Suwaidi, Director-General of the UAE General Civil Aviation Authority (GCAA), warned that technological adoption must not outpace safety safeguards.
“Artificial intelligence holds significant potential to drive comprehensive transformation across the civil aviation ecosystem,” Al Suwaidi said. “Harnessing these technologies requires clear governance and regulatory frameworks to ensure their safe, responsible and transparent use.”
The three-day gathering, held under the theme “Integration and Development of Artificial Intelligence and Civil Aviation,” convened international regulators, airline executives, and tech developers to address the operational deployment of machine learning.
AI applications in aviation are expanding beyond passenger chatbots into core operational environments, including predictive maintenance, real-time airspace routing, air traffic management, and automated ground operations. Al Suwaidi argued that international regulators must synchronize their standards to prevent fragmented regional policies that could compromise cross-border aviation safety.
The adoption of AI, Al Suwaidi noted, must ultimately be judged by clear operational benchmarks: enhancing passenger safety, eliminating system bottlenecks, and curbing aviation emissions.
The summit highlighted the expanding transport alliance between Abu Dhabi and Beijing. Bilateral air services agreements between the two nations now support more than 90 passenger and cargo flights per week, linking major commercial hubs across both territories.
Both countries are directing substantial capital toward advanced air mobility, autonomous transport systems, and next-generation vertiport infrastructure. Al Suwaidi called for joint regulatory sandboxes where Chinese and Emirati civil aviation authorities can test algorithmic decision-support tools before rolling them out across commercial fleets.
On the sidelines of the conference, Al Suwaidi met with Pan Yixin, Secretary-General of the China Air Transport Association, to negotiate framework agreements covering data sharing, sustainable air cargo management, and technical personnel training.
The CATA exhibition brought together more than 100 industrial manufacturers, aviation software firms, and logistics providers, showcasing autonomous flight inspection systems, AI-powered smart cargo screening, and digital-twin airport monitoring platforms.
