The European Commission has received the Performance Review Body’s proposed EU-wide target ranges for the fourth reference period (RP4, 2025-2029) of the Single European Sky performance and charging scheme. The indicative targets will be put to stakeholders in a targeted consultation.
The target ranges aim to better incentivise the performance of the monopoly air navigation service providers designated by the Member States. They also aim to ensure the highest safety standards, encourage more efficient flight paths to reduce environmental impact, and improve the punctuality of flights, as well as value for money for airlines and passengers.
Since 2020, the aviation industry has seen significant traffic volatility due to the COVID-19 pandemic, the subsequent strong rebound in air travel, and Russia’s ongoing war of aggression against Ukraine. In particular, the circumnavigation of Ukrainian, Belarussian, and Russian airspace has led to more inefficient flight trajectories on certain routes which, combined with long-lasting capacity issues across the aviation network, resulted in the highest year-on-year deterioration of environmental performance in 2022.
Improving the environmental performance of air traffic, in line with the European Green Deal objectives, is a key priority when setting future performance targets. Stepping up environmental performance is dependent on having sufficient capacity, which is why the Member States and their monopoly service providers are encouraged to invest in operations, staff and technology, which are subject to continuous innovation fostered by EU funding for the SESAR 3 Joint Undertaking (SESAR) and the Connecting Europe Facility. Having sufficient and flexible air navigation services will help the EU meet traffic requirements and achieve its environmental targets.
Air traffic in 2029 is forecast to be 6.1% higher than in 2019 (the previous highest recorded, which will be reached again this year). Different studies have demonstrated that better performance by air navigation service providers can reduce the carbon footprint of aviation by up to 10%.
For each Key Performance Area, the recommended target ranges are the following:
- Safety: While air traffic management in Europe is already very safe, the Performance Review Body(PRB) recommends, in coordination with the European Union Aviation Safety Agency (EASA), safety management targets for air navigation service providers.
- Environment: The PRB proposes target ranges that account for the benefits of recent and future improvements resulting, inter alia, from SESAR; account for the interdependency between environment and capacity; and consider the impact of Russia’s war of aggression against Ukraine.
- Capacity: The PRB proposes ambitious target ranges to support improvement in environmental performance, taking into consideration: the historical capacity performance of service providers; the historical occurrence of delays related to disruptions not controlled by service providers and adverse weather; the capacity improvement plans included in the European Network Operations Plan 2023-2027 (April 2023); and obligations stemming from the Common Project One Implementing Regulation (EU) 2021/116).
- Cost-efficiency: The PRB proposes target ranges that support the delivery of performance in safety, environment and capacity.
Next steps
The European Commission will invite stakeholders to submit their observations in a survey in October. More information will be available here. A meeting with stakeholders will be held on the 8 November 2023; invitations will be issued directly to accredited representatives.
Background
The Performance Review Body comprises nine high-level independent aviation experts from European states. The PRB is chaired by Cathy Mannion.
The PRB assists the European Commission in regulating and incentivising the performance of monopoly air navigation service providers designated by the Member States. It provides independent advice and expertise to improve the performance of air navigation in Europe in safety, capacity, environment and cost-efficiency.
The performance and charging scheme of the Single European Sky is the regulatory instrument through which the Commission drives the performance of air navigation services in cooperation with Member States, national supervisory authorities and operational stakeholders.
SESAR is the technological pillar of the Single European Sky. It aims to improve Air Traffic Management (ATM) performance by modernising and harmonising ATM systems through the definition, development, validation and deployment of innovative technological and operational ATM solutions.
Related documents
See also
Details
- Publication date
- 29 September 2023
- Author
- Directorate-General for Mobility and Transport