Riyadh, Feb. 14, 2022, SPA -- The 19th Meeting of the Middle East Air Navigation Planning and Implementation Regional Group and the 9th Meeting of the Middle East Regional Aviation Safety Group, began today in Riyadh, organized by the General Authority of Civil Aviation in cooperation with the Middle East Regional Office of the International Civil Aviation Organization with the participation of officials of civil aviation authorities of member states, representatives of the International Civil Aviation Organization, the Arab Civil Aviation Organization, the International Air Transport Association in the Middle East, and several international aviation industry organizations. The four-day meeting aims to ensure the continuous development of international civil aviation in the Middle East and neighboring regions per the international rules and recommendations issued by the International Civil Aviation Organization and the global air navigation plan for air navigation systems and air traffic management. It also aims to facilitate and coordinate the implementation of the submission of air navigation services in a manner that ensures safety, regularity and efficiency in the Middle East, as well as identifying deficiencies to be addressed in the field of air navigation services in the Middle East. In its first day, the meeting discussed several issues, including the latest international developments in the air navigation sector, the outcomes of the World Safety Conference 2021, the impacts of the Corona pandemic on the aviation sector, and the outputs of the regional work teams in the field of air navigation, airports, environment and meteorology, in addition to the preparations for the Middle East region to manage the flow of air traffic for the 2022 World Cup event in Qatar. --SPA 21:15 LOCAL TIME 18:15 GMT 0027 www.spa.gov.sa/w1691499