The European skies are too crowded and the technology supporting the management of safe aircraft movements not efficient enough. Projections foresee a doubling of air traffic in the next 20 years. SESAR, the innovative European programme to modernise this technology, is designed to set a halt to traffic jams in the air.
LFV - Swedish Air Navigation Services - is an active member of SESAR through COOPANS.
The key objectives are to
- Restructure European airspace as a function of air traffic flows.
- Create additional capacity.
- Increase the overall efficiency of the air traffic management system.
Contrary to the United States, Europe does not have a single sky, one in which air navigation is managed at the European level. Furthermore, European airspace is among the busiest in the world with over 33,000 flights on busy days and high airport density. This makes air traffic control even more complex.
The EU Single European Sky is an ambitious initiative launched by the European Commission to reform the architecture of European air traffic management. It proposes a legislative approach to meet future capacity and safety needs at a European rather than a local level. SESAR aims at developing the new generation air traffic management system capable of ensuring the safety and fluidity of air transport worldwide over the next 30 years.