Budget restrictions threaten air safety, warns TCU

The TCU (Federal Audit Court) warned that the budgetary restrictions faced by Anac (National Civil Aviation Agency) could compromise the continuity of positive results in Brazilian aviation safety in the coming years.

The conclusion is part of an audit carried out by the Court to evaluate the agency's performance in areas considered strategic for civil aviation, such as airworthiness and compliance with the recommendations of Cenipa (Aeronautical Accident Investigation and Prevention Center).

According to the court, although Anac effectively fulfills its regulatory and inspection functions, maintaining a system aligned with international standards, the continuous reduction in the agency's budget represents a risk to maintaining this level of excellence.

According to the report, Anac's budget in 2025 corresponds to just a third of the corrected value from 2013. The TCU points out that financial limitations can affect areas such as inspection, certification of new technologies and technical training of servers.

The audit, however, concluded that no signs of irregularities were found in the areas analyzed.

The report also highlighted Brazilian performance in evaluations by Oaci (International Civil Aviation Organization). The country achieved a compliance rate of 100% in the area of airworthiness and 99.35% in the investigation of aeronautical accidents and incidents.

For TCU, the results place the Brazilian regulatory system among the best evaluated in the world and reinforce the credibility of the national airline sector on the international stage.

Another point highlighted by the Court was the Risk-Based Surveillance model adopted by Anac. The system allows prioritizing inspection actions in areas considered most sensitive, optimizing agency resources.

The audit also found that Anac had a 93.23% compliance rate with Cenipa recommendations between 2018 and 2022. Although these recommendations are not mandatory, the court assessed that the level of adherence demonstrates the agency's commitment to preventing accidents and continuously improving operational safety.

Source: CNN