Once upon a time, EUROCONTROL had been created to be the air navigation service provider for Europe. Operating a limited number of air traffic control centers, a research institute and a training facility, it would have been the key to an efficient set up not unlike what we find in the United States. Unfortunately, before… Continue reading Will EUROCONTROL's New DG Rebuild an Old Dream?
Tag: ATM
Air transport growth and the privacy rules… something has to give.
Information is power. Shared information is efficiency. The right information, at the right place and the right time is what air traffic management of the future needs. Whether one reads material on collaborative decision making (CDM), system-wide information management (SWIM) or any number of other papers and articles about ATM, the need for quality information,… Continue reading Air transport growth and the privacy rules… something has to give.
Is there a future for the FABs?
In view of the huge effort that went into creating at least the legal framework for the nine Functional Airspace Blocks (FABs) and the recent hard words from the industry blasting states and the European Commission for the failure of the FABs to deliver anything really useful by the December 4 deadline, the question in… Continue reading Is there a future for the FABs?
New ICAO Flight Plan goes live on 15 November
The worldwide implementation of ICAO Flight Plan changes take effect this week on 15 November 2012. The amendments to flight plan content go to the very core of flight plan processing. 15 November 2012 is the ultimate deadline: after that date, current or old format flight plan messages will no longer be accepted. Aircraft Operators… Continue reading New ICAO Flight Plan goes live on 15 November
A Pragmatic Approach to modernising Europe’s Air Traffic Management Systems – SJU Press Release
Just a few days after the rather damning speeach of the European Commission’s Transport Commissioner, blasting Europe for 10 years of essential inaction on the Single European Sky (SES), the SESAR Joint Undertaking published the press release you can find below. The SJU strikes a rather more optimistic tone although the dissonance between these two… Continue reading A Pragmatic Approach to modernising Europe’s Air Traffic Management Systems – SJU Press Release
Storm rising?
If you read the official communiqués from SESAR and EUROCONTROL, it is easy to be lulled into the perception that all is well on the European air traffic management front and we are more than ready to face any sudden jump in traffic demand. If, on the other hand, you listen to the jungle telegraph… Continue reading Storm rising?
Fragmentation then and now…
In previous writings on the problems we see with the concept of Functional Airspace Blocks (FAB), the authors have often compared the European ATM fragmentation the nine FABs are bringing to the situation we had back in the early 70s. Like all comparisons, this one is not perfect by far, but there are enough similarities to… Continue reading Fragmentation then and now…
Déjà Vu
EUROCONTROL will forgive me for quoting here from the latest issue of Skyway magazine, which focuses on airspace users. Here is what they have to say in the introduction: With the onset of the Single European Sky performance scheme, collaborative decision making, the business and mission trajectories as defined by the SESAR program and a… Continue reading Déjà Vu
An Air Traffic Management Master Plan with Question Marks
If you follow European air traffic management developments, you will have noticed in the news that the ATM Master Plan is undergoing a significant update and the SESAR ATM Master Plan portal promises to have new information on this by mid-2012. About now that is… There was less discussion about interesting events surrounding the Master… Continue reading An Air Traffic Management Master Plan with Question Marks
Is SESAR Doomed to Fail?
As some of us will remember, SESAR is not the first attempt to remedy the sad state of air traffic management in Europe. Think EATCHIP and ATM2000+… This latter was especially significant, since the ministers of transport of all ECAC States had signed off on it, promising to implement what was required to make the… Continue reading Is SESAR Doomed to Fail?