This edition of State of the Union focuses on the dispute between the aviation industry and pilots over the number of pilots on an airplane.
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00:00Hello and welcome to State of the Union, I'm Stefan Grobe in Brussels.
00:09When Hungarian Prime Minister Viktor Orban traveled to Russia and China on a self-assigned
00:14peace mission recently, he should have known that he would risk a backlash among his colleagues
00:19in the European Council.
00:21And so it happened.
00:23This week was payback time.
00:25At the Foreign Affairs Council, the EU's top diplomat delivered a blistering rebuke
00:29against Orban and accused the newly-minted rotating Council President of disloyalty.
00:35Borrell confirmed the next informal Foreign Ministers' Meeting to be held in Brussels,
00:40effectively kicking a previously planned meeting in Budapest off the agenda.
00:45We have to send a signal, even if it is a symbolic signal, that being against the foreign
00:53policy of the European Union and disqualifying the policy of the European Union as the party
01:00of war has to have some consequences, well, formal consequences.
01:07Whether the Hungarian government will use the summer weeks to contemplate about maybe
01:12a different approach remains to be seen.
01:15I'd be surprised.
01:17To something more meaningful now, at the 25th International AIDS Conference in Munich this
01:23week, researchers, medics and politicians were trying to find ways to cure the epidemic.
01:29Around 40 million people worldwide are still living with the disease, an awful number despite
01:35all the medical progress that has been made over the decades.
01:39While AIDS has pretty much dropped off the radar in wealthy countries, the fight continues
01:45in many of the world's poorer parts, a fight that needs not only money and research but
01:51also empathy.
01:53One person dies of AIDS every minute.
01:56One person every minute.
01:59That is something we must change.
02:02Our common goal is to end the AIDS epidemic by 2030.
02:06We need more research, better prevention, people-centered information and thorough testing.
02:15But what we really have to keep working on is the fight against discrimination and stigma.
02:21Speaking of a danger to health, the European Cockpit Association of Commercial Pilots launched
02:27an ad campaign in Brussels' airport bathrooms this week to raise awareness of what they
02:33believe to be a massive safety risk, a proposal by aircraft manufacturers and airlines to
02:39have one pilot at the controls only and not two.
02:43The idea has sparked massive resistance among pilots and is currently being evaluated by
02:48the European Aviation Safety Agency.
02:52For more details, I'm now joined by Tanja Hater, Technical Affairs Director at the European
02:57Cockpit Association.
02:58Welcome to the program.
03:01Thanks for having us.
03:03So let me get straight to the point.
03:05Why do we need two pilots on an airplane?
03:08Two pilots on an airplane are there for a reason.
03:12We do have all the systems, everything on an aircraft, at least twice.
03:18That includes the pilots.
03:21Pilots have very distinctive roles.
03:23They work together very closely, communicate all the time, and that's how they solve problems
03:32and operate the flight.
03:34So it's always two that are doing this and are thinking about what's ahead and what the
03:44issues are.
03:46The ECA, your organization, as well as thousands of pilots worldwide are advocating against
03:53the extended minimum crew operations for quite some time now.
03:58Why is it obviously so difficult to convince the industry?
04:02It is a very tempting issue for various reasons.
04:08One might be a cost-cutting exercise.
04:12The other might be the issue of presumed or perceived pilot shortage.
04:21All of these issues are coming our way and are used for a reason.
04:25What we haven't heard is a really pressing safety issue.
04:30We know that aircraft manufacturers and airlines are the ones who are pushing for flights with
04:34one pilot.
04:35How will the aviation authorities and regulatory bodies react?
04:40Well, Airbus, as one of the manufacturers, apparently driven by their customers, the
04:46operators, has placed a request for certification of such an aircraft to the European regulator.
04:54They are looking into the issue and the certification process is underway.
05:01On top of that, they will start room-making, accompanying the whole thing, all the operational
05:09side of the house, as far as we know, this fall.
05:13The call for experts has been out and we are waiting for the room-making to start, but
05:17it is definitely the plan.
05:20So when can we expect this issue to be settled once and for all?
05:25Well, that is a very good question.
05:29The room-making is supposed to start in the fall.
05:34If you look at the European plan for aviation safety, which is the timeline we are working
05:39with, they want to put it into operation as soon as 2027.
05:45All right, we'll be monitoring this closely.
05:48Thank you, Tanja Harter there from the European Cockpit Association.
05:51Thank you so much for your insights today.
05:53Thank you very much for having us.
05:58It might be necessary these days to tell pilots about a stunning phenomenon in Cyprus.
06:03There, the small community of Messana has been swarmed by tens of thousands of migrating
06:10swallows.
06:11The birds are resting on utility poles and high-voltage lines.
06:16Why the swallows gather there only between six and eight in the morning and then scatter
06:22is a mystery.
06:24They repeat this process religiously for two summer months until they fly to Africa in
06:29early September.
06:30According to experts, the birds relate to each other and begin travel plans.
06:36It might also be a way of organizing their large community.
06:40No one knows for certain.
06:43The lore has it that it brings bad luck to those who try to anger the birds.
06:50Someone should really tell the pilots.
06:54That's it for this edition.
06:55I'm Stefan Grober.
06:56Thank you for watching.
06:57Have an excellent week.