Europe commits to "timely" SES implementation

European Commission announced all stakeholders of the European aviation community agreed to give the necessary impetus to a timely implementation of the Single European Sky (SES). According to the Commission, the Single European Sky is of "utmost importance for the future of European aviation", as it is expected to cut the cost of operations by 50%, decrease the environmental impact of flights by 10%, and improve capacity and the already very high safety record of European airspace. [more]

European Commission: "Time for reflection is over. Europe is paying dearly the costs of fragmentation. We now need to act and deliver a seamless, safer, more performant and sustainable single sky for Europe by 2012. I welcome today's results," Siim Kallas, VP for Transport. Source: European Commission, 26-Feb-2010.

Association of European Airlines (AEA) announced (26-Feb-2010) it strongly endorses the need to pursue progress towards the rationalisation of European airspace under the SES programme. According to AEA, the European air traffic management system suffers from fragmentation and inefficiencies which inflate the EUR9.5 billion annual cost to the airlines by one-third. If the system were operated more efficiently, safety would be enhanced, delays would be avoided and CO2 emissions per flight would be substantially decreased. [more]

Association of European Airlines: "The Single Sky means higher performance at lower cost - the airlines benefit, their customers benefit, the environment benefits and a key element for European competitiveness runs more smoothly - how can it be other than a great deal? And yet there is a downside: the length of time it is taking to realise the project...We are positioned for take-off towards a truly 21st-century solution for ait traffic management. There should no longer be any reasons to delay the departure," Antonio Vazquez, Supervisory Board Member. Source: Association of European Airlines, 26-Feb-2010.