The objective of the Single European Sky (SES) is to reform the architecture of air traffic control in the EU, in order to meet future capacity and safety needs. This should be achieved through improving the overall performance of air traffic management (ATM) and air navigation services (ANS). Though the SES initiative has delivered some results, it is experiencing significant delays, in particular in the deployment of its basic elements such as functional airspace blocks (FABs). Therefore European Commission has undertaken a revision of the SES legal framework. In June 2013, the Commission proposed to recast the four main regulations creating the SES and to amend the Regulation on the European Aviation Safety Agency (EASA). 

In March 2014, the EP adopted its first reading position on the Commission 2013 proposal. In its legislative resolution of 12 March 2014 on the recast proposal, the EP tightened the provisions on the independence of NSAs, confirming that they should be legally distinct and independent. The EP also pointed out that there should be no statutory impediments to providers of support services that would prevent their ability to compete within the EU. However, before moving forward, the EP requested the Commission to conduct a comprehensive study on the operational, economic, safety and social impacts of the introduction of market principles to the provision of support services, and to submit that study by 1 January 2016. The EP underlined that the Union-wide performance targets should be set with a view of ensuring that each functional airspace block retains sufficient flexibility to achieve best results. In addition, the EP was in favour of establishing FABs .

In December 2014, the Council agreed on a partial general approach on the Commission 2014 proposal. The Council agreed to introduce more flexibility to the process of setting EU-wide and local performance plans and into the way in which FABs are introduced. The Council suggested that opening support services to competition should remain voluntary and that ANSPs could keep on bundling support services with core air navigation services. Due to disagreement between the United Kingdom and Spain, the Council did not decide whether the text should apply to Gibraltar airport. 

In September 2020, the Commission tried to unblock the situation by proposing an upgrade of the SES regulatory framework, to take into account recent developments and compromises already achieved on this file. The Commission proposed to merge the existing SES Regulations into a single regulation and remove overlaps with the EASA Basic Regulation. The new text also tried to address the controversial points due to which the proposal remained stalled in 2013, such as the question of unbundling of air navigation service providers or FABs. The amended proposal no longer contained provisions on the mandatory use of FABs. The Commission proposed to integrate a separate EU body – Performance Review Body (PRB) – into the EASA that would be in charge of the assessment and approval of the performance plans and performance targets for en route air navigation services. The Commission proposed to not to apply the text to Gibraltar airport. The Commission also introduced the possibility of introducing common unit rate for en route services across the SES airspace. 

In the EP, TRAN committee members generally welcomed the Commission proposal, considering it necessary for modernising EU's air traffic management. At the beginning of February 2021, the TRAN committee published its draft report, suggesting a number of amendments to the Commission proposal. It proposed changes to the structure and functioning of the PRB. On 17 June 2021, TRAN Committee adopted its mandate for the negotiations with the Council, which was approved in EP plenary. 

On 6 March 2024, after several years of negotiations, the Parliament and Council negotiators reached and agreement in the Single European Sky package. This agreement will now need the formal approval of the Council and Parliament. The Parliament's TRAN committee approved the agreement on 9 April 2024.

The agreed text includes provisions to make air navigation services and network management contribute to climate neutrality. EU performance targets on capacity, cost efficiency, climate and environmental factors for air navigation services will be developed by the Commission and the performance of these services against these targets will be reviewed at least every three years.

According to the agreement, an independent advisory Performance Review Board would be established to help the Commission and Member States take decisions on the implementation of performance plans for air navigation services to improve network management of EU airspace, that will have to have binding targets and incentives to make flights more efficient and environmentally friendly. 

The agreement also stipulates that the air navigation service providers and the national supervisory authority can be part of the same organisation as long as they are functionally separated and fulfil independence requirements. Member States may merge economic and safety oversight functions in the same administrative entity and they may authorise the opening of certain air navigation services to market conditions.

The Council approved the text on 26 September 2024. 

Following the European elections of 6-9 June 2024, Jens Gieseke (EPP, Germany) and 
Johan Danielsson (S&D, Sweden) were appointed rapporteurs on 30 September 2024. 

The Parliament approved the text on 22 October 2024.

The final act was signed on the 23 October 2024 and it was published in the Official Journal of the EU on 11 November 2024. 

References:

• EP Legislative Observatory, Procedure file on a Regulation on Implementation of the Single European Sky. Recast, 2013/0186 (COD)
• European Parliament, European Parliament approves more efficient and greener EU airspace, Press release, 22 October 2024
• European Commission, Proposal for a European Parliament and Council Regulation on the implementation of the Single European Sky (recast), COM(2013) 410
• European Commission, Proposal for a European Parliament and Council Regulation amending Regulation (EC) No 216/2008 in the field of aerodromes, air traffic management and air navigation services, COM (2013) 0187 
• European Parliament, Legislative resolution of 12 March 2014 on the proposal for a regulation of the European Parliament and of the Council on the implementation of the Single European Sky (recast), 2013/0186 (COD)
• European Commission,  Amended proposal for a Regulation on the implementation of the Single European Sky (recast), COM(2020) 579
• European Commission, Proposal for a Regulation amending Regulation (EU) 2018/1139 as regards the capacity of the European Union Aviation Safety Agency to act as Performance Review Body of the Single European Sky, COM (2020) 577
• European Commission, Staff Working Document on A fresh look at the Single European Sky, SWD(2020) 187
• European Economic and Social Committee, Opinion, Single European Sky 2+, TEN/722-EESC-2020
• Council, General approach on Single European Sky (recast) and Performance Review Body, 9162/21
• Agence Europe, ‘Single European Sky’, next interinstitutional negotiations are going to be complicated, Press release, 16 November 2021
• Agence Europe, National supervisors and ‘Single Sky’, Member States take stock of issues to move closer to a compromise with European Parliament, Press release, 15 July 2022

Further reading:

• European Parliament, EPRS, Single European Sky, Briefing, April 2015
• European Parliament, EPRS, Single European Sky 2+ package. Amended Commission proposal, Briefing, November 2024
• European Parliament, EPRS, European Commission proposal on the Single European Sky - SES II+, initial appraisal of a Commission impact assessment, January 2014

Author: Jaan Soone, Members' Research Service, legislative-train@europarl.europa.eu