The single European sky initiative aims to increase the efficiency of air traffic management and air navigation services by reducing the fragmentation of European airspace. By its nature, this ongoing initiative is pan-European and open to neighbouring countries.
Article 100(2) of the Treaty on the Functioning of the European Union.
The single European sky (SES) initiative was launched in 1999 to improve the performance of air traffic management (ATM[1]) and air navigation services (ANS[2]) through better integration of European airspace. The stated benefits of the SES could potentially be huge: compared with 2004, the SES (upon completion around 2030-2035) could triple airspace capacity, halve the costs of ATM, improve safety tenfold and reduce the environmental impact of aviation by 10%[3].
The single European sky initiative was launched in response to delays incurred as a result of air navigation, which had reached a peak in Europe in the late 1990s. The SES is intended to reduce the fragmentation of European airspace (between Member States, civil and military usage, and technologies), thereby increasing its capacity and the efficiency of air traffic management and air navigation services. By its nature, the initiative is pan-European and open to neighbouring countries in its implementation. In practice, the SES should result in reduced flight times (because of shorter paths and fewer delays) and, consequently, in lower flight costs and aircraft emissions. The first set of common requirements establishing the SES was adopted in 2004 (SES I); these included Regulation (EC) No 549/2004 laying down the framework for the creation of the single European sky, Regulation (EC) No 550/2004 on the provision of air navigation services, Regulation (EC) No 551/2004 on the organisation and use of the airspace in the single European sky[4], and Regulation (EC) No 552/2004 on the interoperability of the European Air Traffic Management network. This framework was amended in 2009 (SES II) to include performance-based mechanisms (Regulation (EC) No 1070/2009). It was also complemented by the extension of EU rules on aviation safety (and the related competencies of the European Aviation Safety Agency) to ATM, ANS, and airport operations[5]. In parallel, a number of implementing rules and technical standards have been adopted either by the Commission through the comitology procedure or, less frequently, by the legislator[6].
This comprehensive regulatory framework has significantly boosted the restructuring of European airspace and the provision of ANS. It has led to, among other things: the separation of regulatory functions from service provision; much greater flexibility in the civil and military use of airspace; the interoperability of equipment; the harmonised classification of upper airspace[7]; a common charging scheme for ANS; and common licensing requirements for air traffic controllers. In addition, it has established the ‘key components’, which form the structure of the SES:
Consequently, it seems that, despite annual fluctuations, the efficiency of ATM in Europe is improving. Average en-route ATFM delays have decreased from 1.43 minutes per flight in 2008 to 0.86 minutes in 2016 (with a current performance target of 0.5 minutes delay per flight). Average airport arrival ATFM delays have followed the same trend, falling from about 1 minute per flight in 2008 to 0.75 minutes in 2016. Similarly, the average horizontal direct en-route extension[14] — based on the latest filed flight plan — seems to be on a downward trend, from 5.03% in 2009 to 4.82% in 2016 (i.e. the routes flown were on average 4.82% longer than the most direct route), with a current performance target of 4.1%. Cost efficiency has also improved: in spite of lower-than-planned traffic demand, and the related fall in planned revenue, en-route unit costs per service unit (in real terms) fell by 16.7% in the SES area between 2009 and 2014[15].
It is worth noting that these improvements can be partly explained by rather low traffic because of the economic downturn (2016 traffic levels were barely the equivalent of those recorded in 2008). While traffic has been increasing again since mid-2013, the current trends will probably not be enough to achieve the (very ambitious) SES objectives[16]. In fact, in spite of the progress made over the last 10 years, full integration of the European airspace is still far from complete. The SES initiative (which in any case is not expected to be completed by 2030-2035) faces difficulties and resistance, in particular because of its huge scope. In June 2013, the Commission proposed a new set of rules to address the issues of efficiency and performance, as well as the present sub-optimal institutional set-up. These proposals are still under discussion[17].
On 22 September 2020, the Commission proposed an upgrade of the SES regulatory framework with a view to providing more sustainable and resilient air traffic management in line with the European Green Deal. The upgrade consists in an amended proposal for a regulation on the implementation of the SES (2013/0186(COD)) and a proposal to amend Regulation (EU) 2018/1139 as regards the capacity of the European Union Aviation Safety Agency to act as Performance Review Body of the SES (2020/0264(COD)).
Parliament has always endeavoured to remove obstacles to the implementation of the single European sky by adopting a pragmatic approach. In this connection, it has insisted strongly and successfully on the need for close cooperation between the civil and military sectors, in the context of flexible use of airspace, even when the Member States were still reluctant to address the issue. Parliament also proposed the creation of an industry consultation body to enable stakeholders to advise the Commission on technical aspects of the SES. In addition, Parliament has always emphasised the crucial role that Eurocontrol has to play in the implementation of the SES, and the need to foster cooperation with neighbouring countries with a view to extending the initiative beyond EU borders.
Given that the major objectives of the SES are yet to be achieved, Parliament is now calling on the Commission to switch from a ‘bottom-up’ to a ‘top-down’ approach, in order to overcome any lingering reticence and to speed up the implementation of the initiative, in particular with respect to the SESAR programme and the functional airspace blocks.
Major related decisions taken by Parliament include:
Ariane Debyser / Davide Pernice