The European Commission has adopted a second package of legislation for a Single European Sky (SES II).
The proposals aim to further improve safety, cut costs and reduce delays. That will in turn mean lower fuel consumption, so that airlines could save up to 16 million tonnes of CO2 emissions and cut their annual cost by about US$4.7 billion.
This full reform of the European air traffic management system will be key to managing the doubling of traffic expected by 2020. Not only airline passengers, but also freight forwarders and military and private aviation will benefit. The package will create additional jobs in aviation.
Meanwhile, European manufacturing industry will gain from being at the forefront of innovation in air traffic management technology, thus giving it a competitive edge on global markets.
Commission Vice-President responsible for transport, Antonio Tajani, said: "This package is a win-win for passengers, for Europe's economy and for the environment. The skies in Europe are still fragmented. As a consequence, flights are on average 49 km longer than needed. Our proposal aims at helping reduce queues to take off and land, passengers will have more chance of arriving on time. At the same time the package will help us deliver safer and greener flying, while creating more capacity."
The SES II package is based on four pillars: updates to existing legislation from 2004; the SESAR ATM (Single European Sky Air Traffic Management Research) Master Plan or technological pillar; the safety pillar and an airport capacity action plan.
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