NTU carried out a training and capacity building workshop on the subject of "EU Airport and Aviation Competition Regulations: aquis and implementation" in Moldova

The main subject of the event was "EU Airport and Aviation Competition aquis and implementation." The event was held on January 24th, 2014 within Chisinau International Airport headquarters. It gathered representatives from the Moldovan Civil Aviation Authority, "Chisinau International Airport", "Airport Handling" company, Ministry of Transport and Road Infrastructure, Moldovan Association of Civil Aviation, Air Moldova, Tandem Aero Air Company and Competition Council of Moldova. The workshop led by NTU Expert on Airports and Aviation Competition , and NTU Civil Aviation Legal Expert aimed to introduce the Moldovan authorities, in particular the CAA of the Republic of Moldova, to generally how the EU Regulation for the airports and aviation competition area should be implemented in Republic of Moldova in accordance with Common Aviation Area Agreement between the European Union and the Republic of Moldova and to understand the role and responsibilities of the State (authorities) in this regard. Additionally, among the objectives of the event was to present and evaluate existing practices and to propose possible ways forward. The Director of Civil Aviation Authority Mr. Iurie Armas opened the workshop by welcoming experts and participants. Mr. Armas mentioned in his opening speech his support on the implementation of the European policies in the field of civil aviation in Moldova. The first part of the Workshop was dedicated to legal aspects, rules, economic issues in the airport business. During the workshop discussions were focused on the regulations and regulatory framework for airports, competition rules in civil aviation and the role and responsibilities of the Civil Aviation Authority in this field. The talks also dealt with social aspects, environment and consumer protection. The experts made comparisons with airports and their policies within the EU countries and separate cases, concrete situations to be compared with Moldova's experience in this regard. The second part was mainly dedicated to the competition rules, as this issue is crucial for the Moldovan authorities in drafting regulations and specific laws of this field. The participants engaged in discussions of the presented regulations and directives as well as raised a number of key questions for the legal frameworks and the future need of the sector. Questions on airport charges and implementation of The Community guidelines on financing of airports and start-up aid to airlines departing from regional airports were discussed in depth. Distinctions between different services provided at an aerodrome (Article 4 (4) of the Directive 2009/12) took central stage. NTU conducted this event in line with the activities of the "Technical Assistance Project for the implementation of the legal framework in the Aviation Sector according to ACAA between the EU and Moldova".