The European Parliament,

–  having regard to the new item on inflight tracking on the agenda of the next International Telecommunication Union (ITU) World Radiocommunication Conference (WRC-15), to be held in Geneva from 2 to 27 November 2015,

–  having regard to the working paper entitled ‘Aircraft Tracking and Localisation Options’, presented by the EU to the International Civil Aviation Organisation (ICAO) Multidisciplinary Meeting regarding Global Tracking of 12 and 13 May 2014,

–  having regard to the recommendations made by the aforementioned ICAO Multidisciplinary Meeting regarding Global Tracking,

–  having regard to European Aviation Safety Agency Opinion 01/2014 of 5 May 2014, entitled ‘Amendment of requirements for flight recorders and underwater locating devices’,

–  having regard to safety recommendations issued by various national safety investigation authorities with a view to increasing safety by facilitating the recovery of information for the purposes of civil aviation safety investigations and improving flight recorder performance and handling as well as the location of aircraft after an accident over water(1),

–  having regard to the draft Commission regulation amending Regulation (EU) No 965/2012 as regards requirements for flight recorders, underwater locating devices and aircraft tracking systems(2),

–  having regard to the question to the Commission on the allocation by the World Radiocommunication Conference, to be held in Geneva from 2 to 27 November 2015 (WRC-15), of the necessary radio spectrum band to support the future development of a satellite-based technology to enable global flight tracking systems (O-000118/2015 – B8‑1101/2015),

–  having regard to the motion for a resolution of the Committee on Transport and Tourism,

–  having regard to Rules 128(5) and 123(2) of its Rules of Procedure,

A.  whereas the tragedies involving Air France flight AF447 (1 June 2009) and Malaysia Airlines flight MH370 (8 March 2014) highlighted the need to put in place new systems to determine the position of public transport aircraft at all times, even in remote locations;

B.  whereas such global air traffic management (ATM) surveillance systems will make it easier to determine the location of an aircraft in the event of abnormal behaviour, an emergency or an accident;

C.  whereas, in light of the AF447 and MH370 tragedies, such systems should be unaffected by the loss of normal electrical power on board and should not offer any possibility of being disabled during the flight;

D.  whereas such systems will improve the effectiveness of search and rescue operations and of investigations, as current flight tracking systems only partially cover the globe;

E.  whereas these systems could also be an important tool for increasing ATM efficiency and capacity while significantly enhancing aviation safety and lowering infrastructure costs;

F.  whereas the Commission, in cooperation with the European Aviation Safety Agency (EASA), the International Civil Aviation Organisation (ICAO) and stakeholders, has started to study various technical options, on the basis of their performance, and has proposed rules on aircraft tracking with phased implementation;

G.  whereas among the possible options currently in operation and/or being studied (for instance, Automatic Dependent Surveillance – Contract (ADS-C), the Aircraft Communications Addressing and Reporting System (ACARS) High Frequency Data Link), the Automatic Dependent Surveillance – Broadcast (ADS-B) technology, supported by satellite communications, appears to be very promising;

H.  whereas ADS-B technology can assist ATM surveillance outside the most densely populated areas, where radar coverage is limited, impossible or extremely costly (including oceans and uninhabited land areas);

I.  whereas satellite-supported ADS-B technology relies on communications between aircraft and a constellation of satellites to deliver surveillance capability to air navigation service providers, and whereas for this purpose it may require the allocation of a specific radio spectrum band protected from interference;

J.  whereas the World Radiocommunication Conference (WRC-15), scheduled for November 2015 and organised by the International Telecommunication Union (ITU), is the forum for determining which radio services are allocated to specific radio spectrum bands;

K.  whereas action should be taken to ensure that the development of ADS-B technology is not hampered by a lack of timely allocation of an appropriate radio spectrum band;

1.  Supports the Commission’s action aimed at rapidly developing a performance-based global flight tracking system that will enable air navigation service providers to determine the position of public transport aircraft at all times, even in remote locations;

2.  Stresses that such a system should remain effective even in the event of loss of normal electrical power on board, and should not offer any possibility of being disabled during the flight;

3.  Believes that the development of such a system should be achieved through strong cooperation between all interested stakeholders (e.g. industry, airlines, air navigation service providers, safety and rescue services, safety investigation authorities and international organisations);

4.  Notes that satellite-supported ADS-B technology, based on communications between aircraft and satellites, is one of the promising options for the development of a global ATM surveillance system;

5.  Stresses that when implementing ADS-B technology it is essential to consider the needs of all airspace users and to ensure interoperability between alternative technologies in order to avoid safety and security breaches;

6.  Notes that the development of satellite-supported ADS-B technology may require the allocation of an appropriate radio spectrum band in order to prevent any interference;

7.  Calls on the Commission to take the necessary steps – with a view to the next World Radiocommunication Conference (WRC-15), to be held in Geneva in November 2015 – regarding the allocation of the necessary radio spectrum band to support the future development of a satellite-based global flight tracking system;

8.  Instructs its President to forward this resolution to the Commission and the governments and parliaments of the Member States.

(1) European Aviation Safety Agency Opinion 01/2014 of 5 May 2014, p. 1, ‘Reference’. (2) Commission document RPS COM-AC DRC(2015) D040413/02 and its Annex.