Flagging an Identity

One of the smallest nations to exhibit at Farnborough this year, or at any time, must be the Caribbean state of Aruba, which has a presence here on Stand J1, Hall 4.

In 1995 Aruba initiated its international aviation program, since when it claims to have become "one of the most credible offshore civil aviation registries worldwide," according to registry president and CEO Jorge C. Collindres-Marinakis.

Better known to the global general public in the maritime sphere and exemplified particularly in the vast Panamanian and Liberian merchant shipping fleets, the practice of "flagging offshore" is becoming increasingly common in aviation.

But anxious to dismiss adverse associations with merchant shipping's often disreputable "flags of convenience," the Aruba registry chief told Show News, "We not only develop high standards of safety oversight, but also provide our customers with the highest degree of customer service in the industry."

Marketing its registry with the slogan "The Flag of Choice with Convenience," it has become of the few countries to be represented on the International Aviation Review Policy Board, where it sits with the likes of the United States, Canada, the EU countries, Australia and Japan.

By Bob Rodwell