INTERNATIONAL The Impacts of Insurance on Ground Service Insurance considerations across the industry, including in the Middle East, are tightly related to the contractual arrangements between a ground handler and the airline it serves. By Mario Pierobon 24 GROUND SUPPORT WORLDWIDE I nsurance is an important factor for ground service providers to consider. This is certainly true in the Middle East region where numerous ground handling companies are assisting national carriers, regional airlines and even smaller operators. Insurance considerations are tightly related to the contractual arrangements between an airline and a ground service provider, these arrangements are commonly established in accordance with the IATA Standard Ground Handling Agreement (SGHA). Among the several aspects considered by the IATA SGHA are provisions DECEMBER 2020/JANUARY 2021 made for specific tasks that must be accomplished, in addition to the ways safety risk aspects should be treated. The risk considerations in the SGHA have to do mostly with physical damage. " What this wording means in practice is that only direct repair cost is covered. But depending on the individual negotiations, the parties involved can decide on what is included or excluded in case of aircraft ground damage events, " says Ivar Busk, owner of Aviation Care Consulting. " Before 1998, the IATA SGHA did somehow indemnify the ground handler