Case Study
International Air Transport Association (IATA)
OVERVIEW
Period: 2005-Present (Retainer)
Region: Sub-Saharan Africa
Sector: Airline Industry
Plane Talking provides media relations and communications support to the International Air Transport Association (IATA) across English-speaking sub-Saharan Africa, reporting to its Corporate Communications department in Geneva and its Africa-Middle East regional office in Amman. Our role is to position IATA as the authoritative advocate for the airline industry on aviation safety, environmental and financial sustainability, African market liberalisation and access, taxes and charges, and blocked funds, while promoting the socio-economic benefits of an efficient, open and dynamic aviation market. In this capacity, Plane Talking also supports the organisation and delivery of events, ranging from intimate media roundtables to large-scale industry conventions, including IATA’s Annual General Meeting and World Air Transport Summit.
Services Provided
Strategy — Developed communications strategies to maintain IATA’s visibility across English-speaking sub-Saharan Africa and support regional campaigns.
Copywriting — Drafted and edited press releases, opinion editorials, speeches, presentations, video scripts, brochures, website content, invitations, reports and other written materials to convey IATA’s positions on various issues.
Media Relations — Built and maintained relationships with journalists and editors across the region. Compiled media lists, issued press releases, backgrounders, fact sheets, and images, pitched stories, and managed queries and interview requests. Coordinated media attendance and coverage for IATA events, including the AGM and World Air Transport Summit.
Stakeholder Engagement — Built and managed relationships with key stakeholders across public, private and civil sectors, including government officials, airlines, manufacturers, airport operators, and service providers, supporting collaboration and policy advocacy.
Event Management — Supported IATA’s participation in regional and international events, coordinating logistics with local venues, sponsors and vendors. Managed event build-up, delivery and publicity campaigns, including media centre operations and briefing facilities.
Market Intelligence — Monitored industry developments, government policy, competitor activity, and market trends to provide insight into perceptions of IATA and support communications campaigns, issue management and strategic positioning.
“I have enjoyed the dedicated and professional advice and support provided to IATA and its Africa leadership team by Plane Talking, which has provided media relations, daily media monitoring and analysis and public affairs services to IATA in sub-Sahara Africa since 2005. Their work has included the provision of daily news clippings and summaries in addition to managing a diverse set of media, ranging from the travel trade to the mainstream national and pan-Africa news services. With their journalism and broadcasting background, Plane Talking’s team are accomplished writers, producing news releases, briefing packs and speeches. They have also provided media training to myself and several of my senior Africa team. I have no hesitation in recommending Plane Talking.” — Raphael Kuuchi, Vice President for Africa, IATA
Notable Projects
IATA 2013 Annual General Meeting and World Air Transport Summit (2013) – Cape Town, a popular work and leisure destination, was chosen to host the annual World Air Transport Summit and the International Air Transport Association (IATA) AGM in 2013. In 2011 and 2012, IATA tasked us with understudying the local agencies that delivered the previous year’s events in Singapore and Beijing. In the 12 months leading up to the Cape Town gathering, Plane Talking supported IATA’s Geneva-based events team with local coordination and liaison with the venue, host airline, government bodies and vendors. We also managed build-up and event publicity campaigns, coordinated media attendance, and ran the media centre and briefing facilities. The three-day event brought together 1,000 airline executives, government representatives, aircraft and engine manufacturers, airport operators, financiers, and service providers. Over 250 journalists, photographers and TV crews from 40 countries attended, generating extensive global coverage across broadcast, print, online and trade media on a wide range of industry topics.
Global Media Day (2008–Ongoing) – Since 2008, the International Air Transport Association (IATA) has hosted an annual Global Media Day at its Geneva headquarters, bringing a delegation of African journalists to engage directly with the Association’s leadership. Over two full days, media attend briefings on airline economics, industry outlook, sustainability and safety, alongside a regional media roundtable and opportunities for one-on-one interviews. Plane Talking manages the end-to-end delivery of the African delegation. This includes identifying and onboarding journalists, coordinating travel and logistics, and hosting the group throughout the programme. We also facilitate interview opportunities and support media with context and clarification, ensuring they can engage confidently with complex topics. The programme has become a consistent platform for informed African coverage of global aviation issues, strengthening relationships between regional media and IATA’s leadership while improving the depth and accuracy of reporting.
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