**Fifth Meeting of the Cross Polar Trans East Air Traffic Management
Providers' Work Group (CPWG/5)**

(Ft. Worth, TX, 1-3 April 2008)

##### 

##### 

##### Agenda Item 5: Communications, Navigation, Surveillance (CNS) and Air Traffic Management

##### (ATM) issues

## 

## RVSM transition over the High Seas

(Presented by IATA)

+-----------------------------------------------------------------------+
| ## SUMMARY                                                            |
|                                                                       |
| The purpose of this working paper, which was also presented to        |
| TRASAS/2, is to establish understanding and agreement that RVSM       |
| transition procedures over high seas must be governed by              |
| International Agreements and Laws; and not by national State Laws.    |
+-----------------------------------------------------------------------+

**1.0 INTRODUCTION**

1.1 Previous meetings of the informal Cross-Polar Work Group (CPWG) have
tried to find solutions to transition from ICAO RVSM cruising levels in
oceanic airspace to the Russian cruising levels that are in the best
interest of managing and separating air traffic. These efforts are
stalemated by an interpretation that the RVSM transition procedures (in
oceanic airspace) must be dictated by State laws and not by ICAO
provisions. IATA advised the CPWG that this is in contravention to
international agreements and agreed to address this at the next meeting
of TRASAS and CPWG.

2.  **DISCUSSION**

2.1 The definition of high seas and their relationship to the overlying
airspace was defined at the **1982 United Nations Convention on the Law
of the Sea**. **Article 2** of the 1982 Law of the Sea Convention
recognizes that \"*the sovereignty of a coastal state extends beyond its
land territory to an adjacent belt of sea, described as the territorial
sea. This sovereignty extends to the airspace over the territorial sea
as well as to its bed and subsoil*\". **Article 3** sets the limit of
territorial waters at 12 miles. Thus, \"*every State has the right to
establish the breadth of its territorial sea up to a limit not exceeding
12 nautical miles, measured from baselines*\".

2.2 The **Chicago Convention on International Civil Aviation** states
under **Article 12** that ICAO's rules of the air must be applied over
the high seas.

###### **Article 12:** Rules of the Air

*Each contracting State undertakes to adopt measures to insure that
every aircraft flying over or maneuvering within its territory and that
every aircraft carrying its nationality mark, wherever such aircraft may
be, shall comply with the rules and regulations relating to the flight
and maneuver of aircraft there in force. Each contracting State
undertakes to keep its own regulations in these respects uniform, to the
greatest possible extent, with those established from time to time under
this Convention. Over the high seas, the rules in force shall be those
established under this Convention. Each contracting State undertakes to
insure the prosecution of all persons violating the regulations
applicable.*

2.3 The ICAO **Annex 11 - Air Traffic Services** further specifies how
airspace is to be delegated over the high seas and stipulates that this
airspace is not sovereign but is international airspace delegated to
States for the provision of air traffic services. Additionally it
mandates that the air traffic services shall be in accordance to the
provisions of ICAO.

**Annex 11:** FOREWORD

*The Standards and Recommended Practices in Annex 11 apply in those
parts of the airspace under the jurisdiction of a Contracting State
wherein air traffic services are provided and also wherever a
Contracting State accepts the responsibility of providing air traffic
services over the high seas or in airspace of undetermined sovereignty.*

#### Annex 11: Chapter 2, Section 2.1 

*Those portions of the airspace over the high seas or in airspace of
undetermined sovereignty where air traffic services will be provided
shall be determined on the basis of regional air navigation agreements.
A Contracting State having accepted the responsibility to provide air
traffic services in such portions of airspace shall thereafter arrange
for the services to be established and provided in accordance with the
provisions of this Annex.*

2.4 It is important to note that the lack of agreement on how to manage
RVSM transition procedures over the high seas is forcing airlines to fly
other routes, which carries additional costs in fuel and carbon
emissions. The difficulty is that the transition from an ICAO RVSM
altitude to a Russian cruising level is severely penalizing if ATC is
not allowed to keep the diverging aircraft at the last assigned RVSM
level until lateral separation is achieved from the track that the
flight is diverging from.

2.4.1 As example, the NOPAC tracks are aligned close to the FIR boundary
with Russia to avoid the strong upper winds of the North Pacific.
Aircraft that wish to transit off NOPAC into Russia are required to be
at the assigned Russian cruising level prior to crossing the Russian
FIR. However, there is not enough airspace on the NOPAC side of the FIR
boundary to allow for vertical separation with aircraft at adjacent RVSM
flight levels. Consequentially, there are routes such as B241 that
cannot be used (see PAZA NOTAM A0181/08) due to an unacceptable RVSM
transition procedure.

2.4.2 This decision is not based on air traffic management but on a
political decision involving FIR boundaries and the ATC rules being used
on either side of the FIR boundary. IATA is of the opinion that if the
FIR boundary is over the high seas then the provisions of ICAO shall be
applied on both sides. This means that Russian ATC would not be
obligated to transition to Russian cruising levels until the flight
approaches sovereign or territorial airspace.

**3.0 ACTION BY THE MEETING**

3.1 CPWG is invited to:

a)  Note the role and responsibility of the State ATS Provider that has
    international airspace delegated to them, and

b)  Work together and develop RVSM transition procedures based on ATM
    requirements.

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