Single European Sky ATM Research
Encyclopedia
Single European Sky
ATM Research (SESAR) is the name given to the collaborative project that is intended to completely overhaul the European airspace and its Air Traffic Management (ATM).
SESAR’s target concept relies on a number of new key features:
The SESAR project has a parallel in the NextGen
project within the United States
.
, Europe
did not have a single sky — i.e., 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 airport density in Europe is very high. This makes air traffic control even more complex.
The EU Single European Sky initiative was instigated to overcome this fragmentation and capacity limitation by structuring airspace and air navigation services at a pan-European level.
To prepare for future capacity, etc., the SESAR programme was initiated in 2004 (as a continuation of the Eurocontrol project SESAME).
In June 2010, European and American authorities reached a preliminary agreement on interoperability between their future air traffic management systems, SESAR and NextGen
.
Single European Sky
The Single European Sky is a European Commission initiative by which the design, management and regulation of airspace will be coordinated throughout the European Union ....
ATM Research (SESAR) is the name given to the collaborative project that is intended to completely overhaul the European airspace and its Air Traffic Management (ATM).
Project
The SESAR project is composed of three phases :- a Definition phase (2004–2008), to deliver an ATM master plan defining the content, the development and deployment plans of the next generation of ATM systems. This definition phase is led by Eurocontrol, and co-funded by the European CommissionEuropean CommissionThe European Commission is the executive body of the European Union. The body is responsible for proposing legislation, implementing decisions, upholding the Union's treaties and the general day-to-day running of the Union....
under the Trans-European Transport NetworksTrans-European Transport NetworksThe Trans-European Transport Networks are a planned set of road, rail, air and water transport networks designed to serve the entire continent of Europe. The TEN-T networks are part of a wider system of Trans-European Networks , including a telecommunications network and a proposed energy network...
programme and executed by a large consortium of all air transport stakeholders. - a Development phase (2008–2013), to produce the required new generation of technological systems and components as defined in the definition phase. This phase (budget: 2.1 billion euro) is managed by the SESAR Joint UndertakingSESAR Joint UndertakingSESAR Joint Undertaking is the European public-private partnership that is managing the development phase of the Single European Sky ATM Research Programme that will give Europe a high-performance Air Traffic Management infrastructure which will enable the safe and environmentally friendly...
. - a Deployment phase (2014–2020), for a large-scale production and implementation of the new air traffic management infrastructure, composed of fully harmonised and interoperable components which guarantee high performance air transport activities in Europe.
SESAR’s target concept relies on a number of new key features:
- the network operation plan, a dynamic rolling plan for continuous operations that ensures a common view of the network situation;
- full integration of airport operations as part of ATM and the planning process;
- trajectory management, reducing the constraints of airspace organisation to a minimum;
- new aircraft separation modes, allowing increased safety, capacity and efficiency;
- system-wide information management (SWIMSystem Wide Information ManagementSystem Wide Information Management is a Federal Aviation Administration advanced technology program designed to facilitate greater sharing of Air Traffic Management system information, such as airport operational status, weather information, flight data, status of special use airspace, and...
), securely connecting all the ATM stakeholders which will share the same data; - humans as the central decision-makers: controllers and pilots will be assisted by new automated functions to ease their workload and handle complex decision-making processes.
The SESAR project has a parallel in the NextGen
Next Generation Air Transportation System
The Next Generation Air Transportation System is the name given to a new National Airspace System due for implementation across the United States in stages between 2012 and 2025. The...
project within the United States
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
.
History
In the 20th century, contrary to the United StatesUnited States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
, Europe
Europe
Europe is, by convention, one of the world's seven continents. Comprising the westernmost peninsula of Eurasia, Europe is generally 'divided' from Asia to its east by the watershed divides of the Ural and Caucasus Mountains, the Ural River, the Caspian and Black Seas, and the waterways connecting...
did not have a single sky — i.e., 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 airport density in Europe is very high. This makes air traffic control even more complex.
The EU Single European Sky initiative was instigated to overcome this fragmentation and capacity limitation by structuring airspace and air navigation services at a pan-European level.
To prepare for future capacity, etc., the SESAR programme was initiated in 2004 (as a continuation of the Eurocontrol project SESAME).
In June 2010, European and American authorities reached a preliminary agreement on interoperability between their future air traffic management systems, SESAR and NextGen
Next Generation Air Transportation System
The Next Generation Air Transportation System is the name given to a new National Airspace System due for implementation across the United States in stages between 2012 and 2025. The...
.
Dates
- November 2000: establishment of the SES regulation.
- 2004: SESAR definition phased started.
- June 2008: SES-II regulation adopted.
- 8 December 2008: inauguration of the SESAR Joint Undertaking.
- 3 June 2009: official start of the SESAR development programme.
- 12 June 2009: SESAR Joint Undertaking signs agreement with 16 partners totalling €1.9 billion for the creation of the Europe's future ATM system.
- 19 July 2010: SESAR Joint Undertaking opens to Associate partners.
- 8 March 2011: The first SESAR Release during the SESAR Forum at ATC Global in Amsterdam.