Today, the European Parliament in full session adopted the report of its transport and tourism committee, drafted by rapporteur Marian-Jean Marinescu MEP, on the Single European Sky II+ program to defragment European airspace.
In a press statement AEA welcomed the move, and Athar Husain Khan AEA's chief executive officer said: “The clue is in the name.
"Almost ten years ago we had the first Single European Sky legislation, which failed to deliver. So we had SES II, which failed to deliver, now we have SES II+.
"Hopefully this package will provide the appropriate means to overcome the unwillingness of Member States to move forward, and break the current deadlock that we are facing in the implementation of the Single Sky.
“We’re aware of the national sensitivities which have made progress so difficult to achieve, but the benefits from a truly Single Sky for Europe make the effort worthwhile”.
It is estimated that the fragmentation of European airspace and infrastructure generates €5 billion annually of cost burden, creates 19.4 million minutes of flight delays and produces 8.1 million tonnes of unnecessary carbon emissions.
AEA has called on the member states to recognize the single sky as a "truly pan-European flagship project and abolish the ‘frontiers in the sky’ which contrast so sharply with the border-less travel which has enhanced mobility at ground level."
