In the past, programs to improve European air traffic management went under the name EATCHIP (1 to many) and the results were meager at best. More recently we got the Single European Sky (SES 1 and now 2) and of course SESAR. Introduction of SES was a major problem even for the European Commission powerhouse and of course SESAR is still too new to be properly judged.
But no matter, we now have Eyjafjallajokull, apparently the best driver yet for European air traffic management co-operation and hopefully an effective one also. When Iceland’s wayward volcano came to life spewing volcanic ash into the atmosphere which was promptly carried by winds towards Europe, the reaction was almost predictable. Under the banner “safety first” air traffic over the continent was grounded, commencing the longest and most widespread ban on flying since WWII. That no one had prepared contingency plans for such an eventuality is perhaps excusable but the disorganized, fragmented and less than scientific response to the disaster once it struck was not. It was a shame…
But some good things are now emerging even while the industry is trying to figure out how to get at least partial compensation for the losses they suffered, quite unnecessarily some actually claim.
The Single European Sky 2 legislative package was kicked into high gear by Transport Commissioner Siim Kallas and even SESAR (the FAA NextGen’s European counterpart) got a boost as a side effect. The result? Some elements of the SES 2 will come into effect this year rather than 2012 if the European Transport Ministers are to be believed. The SESAR deployment strategy should also see the light of day this year and pushing that thing brings real improvements ever closer.
Has the volcano changed things in Europe and the glacial pace of Brussels decision making? May be yes… At the very least it has brought into focus what happens if a real, continent wide problem occurs to which only fragmented local response is available. Even the most recalcitrant nay-sayers and backwards thinkers must now realize that this kind of totally inadequate response to a crisis cannot be allowed to happen again. One more step and they might even realize that smooth cooperation is better even when there is no crisis…
It looks like Eyjafjallajokull will behave now, so there is time to get Europe’s ATM act together. What happens, as we have seen in the past, if things are once again derailed? Well, we cannot count on good old Eyjafjallajokull to come to the rescue, not so soon anyway. But luckily, there is another, even nastier volcano on Iceland which is rumored to normally erupt within two years of Eyjafjallajokull.
People, you have been warned!
