SES provisional agreement reached

16 March 2024: After an all-night trilogue on 5 March, the European Parliament and European Council Presidency reached a provisional agreement on reforming the Single European Sky (SES). Based on our initial assessment of the agreement, ERA has gone on record to express our disappointment, noting that in our view it does not go far enough in delivering the reform required to deliver the long-needed improvements required for regional airlines. 

In September 2020, the European Commission presented an update to its 2013 proposal on SES 2+ with two legislative proposals: an amended SES 2+ proposal (recast) defining the overall Single European Sky system and a proposal to entrust the European Aviation Safety Agency (EASA) with the role of Performance Review Body (PRB)

By mid 2021, both the European Parliament and European Council published their positions and for the past 3 years, discussions gave been ongoing, in an attempt to find common ground, with a provisional agreement in the early morning of 6 March.

Whilst a final text has not yet been shared, the main elements of the provisional agreement have been summarised by the Council as follows:

• A national supervisory authority is designated by the member state to assess compliance of air navigation service providers with economic requirements, such as financial sustainability and organisational structure, in cooperation with the national competent authority in charge of the certification of air navigation service providers.
• The air navigation service providers and the national supervisory authority can be part of the same organisation provided they are functionally separated and meet independence requirements.
• It will also be possible for member states to merge economic and safety oversight functions in the same administrative entity. This solution cuts red tape and adapts to existing organisational models.
• Member states may decide to authorise the opening of certain air navigation services to market conditions.
• National supervisory authorities and the Commission will together assess the performance of air navigation services, in accordance with the subsidiarity and proportionality principles. The Commission is assisted in this process by a performance review board (PRB), which has an advisory role. The PRB is established as a stable and permanent entity and will be funded by the EU budget.
• Mandatory modulation of en route charges will be introduced to encourage airspace users to support improvements in climate and environmental performance, such as the use of the most fuel-efficient available routing or increased use of alternative clean propulsion technologies, after a cost-benefit analysis determines that such a modulation is feasible and presents an added value.
• The provisional agreement also strengthens the network perspective by adding new network functions and by giving the current network manager, Eurocontrol, additional, clearly delineated tasks so that it can better contribute to the sustainable and efficient use of the airspace.

ERA has continuously recognised the need for an ambitious and seamless Single European Sky, one that delivers for our airlines, our passengers and the environment.

Our initial assessment of the summary provided, and subject to a detailed and thorough review of the full text is made available, is that this agreement does not go far enough to address the needs of Europe’s regional airlines (see previous article below), needs that ERA has consistently advocated for since the European Commission published the recast proposal over three years ago.

We are therefore disappointed that the final agreement appears to fall short of meeting these requirements. It would seem that several concessions appear to have been made which unfortunately reduces the likelihood of the substantial improvements that we have pushed for in terms of airspace capacity, operational efficiency and sustainability. It’s clear that further efforts will be required to address today’s aviation challenges effectively.

19 September 2023: ERA alongside A4E, EBAA and IATA have sent a ‘last call’ position paper urging EU legislators to make substantial progress on the SES 2+ file.

The Single European Sky (SES) Recast proposal was first put forward by the Commission in September 2020. Since then, there has been limited progress with EU Member States and the European Parliament failing to reach agreement on the regulatory text.

This summer has seen traffic returning to near pre-pandemic levels but has been set against a backdrop of airlines facing ever increasing costs and has also resulted in operators often forced to fly longer to keep maintain a level of schedule integrity.  

The reform of European airspace and an ambitious reframed SES regulation is therefore urgently required.

As well as unlocking capacity, safety, operational and ATM cost efficiency improvements, significant CO2 emission reductions can be realised through environmental improvements arising from less fragmentation.

The Airspace User associations last week sent a position paper to the transport attachés and Parliament rapporteurs reminding them of the need for a substantial progress on this priority file, but also to avoid a poor compromise just for compromise’s sake.

To strengthen the European Single Market for aviation, Europe needs:

▪ An Independent European Regulator (“new” Performance Review Body (PRB)): a politically independent organisation with regulatory powers and clear roles and responsibilities including target setting, assessing performance plans, detailed examinations, and imposing corrective measures.

▪ Independent National Supervisory Authorities (NSA) that are free from any influence of public or private bodies to support EU aviation, while taking into account national legal environments and the 'new' PRB in the best, most competent and effective way.

▪ Operational performance measures instead of Modulation of Charges or a Common Unit Rate as these concepts have no positive impact on CO2 emissions but rather push fuel inefficient flying.

▪ A transparent and independent Target Setting Process leading to ambitious Performance Targets reflecting airspace user needs. The PRB/NSAs should ensure delivery and corrective measures.

▪ Charges and cost principles should be regulated through secondary regulation. This increases flexibility and empowers the PRB/NSAs to implement rules and structures as necessary. Based on the COVID-19 experience, the financing of the ATM system needs to be re-evaluated.

We call on EU policymakers and negotiators to refocus on the concept of a unified and harmonised Single and Seamless European Sky as reflected in the Industry Consultation Body (ICB) 'ICB Vision for a Single European Sky'. SES2+ must not cement the status quo or stifle innovation. The EU aviation industry needs an updated regulatory framework to increase capacity and improve airspace efficiency.

To access the paper, please click here.