WRITTEN QUESTION E-2159/02

by Alexandros Alavanos (GUE/NGL) to the Commission

(18 July 2002)

Subject: Air accident in southern Germany and safety conditions in airspace

The probable cause of the collision between a Russian passenger Tupolev 154 aircraft and a Boeing 757 over southern Germany was the fact that the automatic system in the Zurich control tower giving warning of possible collisions was not in operation. This news has increased concerns over the safety of flights in European airspace. Recently, and before the tragic accident, mention was being made of the problems caused by the increasing frequency of flights and related allegations were published. For example, British air traffic controllers believe that since the beginning of the year the number of instances in which safety was jeopardised in their airspace has doubled. Often they are unable to hear the pilots they are monitoring, aircraft disappear from the radar screens, their computers often shut down and aeroplanes cannot maintain the correct safety distances. Greek pilots, in turn, believe that the new system for vertical separation between air corridors (Reduced Vertical Separation Minimums RVSM) creates risks because the technical procedures recommended by Eurocontrol have not been completed.

The Commission:

1. Can it confirm the information regarding the temporary deactivation at the time of the accident of the automatic system providing early warning of imminent danger?

2. Is it aware of the above-mentioned allegations by air traffic controllers and pilots, or other similar accusations? Might they be relevant to the air accident in Germany?

3. What steps does it intend to take to ensure that the increased frequency of flights does not give rise to risks for passengers?

Joint answerto Written Questions E-2130/02 and E-2159/02given by Mrs de Palacio on behalf of the Commission

(22 August 2002)

The information available on the collision between two aircraft over Lake Constance does not, at this stage, allow us to draw any conclusions as to the cause of the accident while the enquiry is still under way. The information would appear to confirm that the automatic warning system on the ground was not in use because it was being serviced. Following the tragedy, the Commission stressed that it was premature to directly connect the problems which arose at the time of the accident, where human error also seems to have been a major factor, with the solutions offered by the Single European Sky initiative. However, some considerations of a general nature are valid today, as they were before the accident occurred.

The growth in air traffic in recent years has put more pressure on national air traffic control systems. More data is exchanged between control centres and there is greater coordination between them. Rules must be observed regarding airspace structure, data exchange, means of communication and the procedures to follow if the system breaks down. Responsibility for ensuring that the rules are correctly observed and are effective lies first with the service providers and, second, with the national authorities, who must monitor their application.

Although the information provided by Eurocontrol and the service providers points to a consistently high level of safety, the European system does have several shortcomings:

- air traffic control capacity has not been sufficiently increased to deal with the growth in traffic;

- control centres are not sufficiently interoperable at present, mainly because so many different systems are in use;

- the present configuration of airspace (control areas and routes) dictated by national interests does not minimise conflict situations and the risk of accident;

- the privatisation of service providers has not been accompanied by the setting up of national supervisory bodies responsible for ensuring that the rules are observed and imposing penalties when they are not.

The aim of the Single European Sky initiative is to improve the situation, i.e. increase capacity, improve interoperability (of systems and procedures), organise airspace more efficiently and ensure that the rules are being correctly observed. It will enable common rules to be introduced regarding procedures, equipment and training and provide for contingency planning to reduce the risk of accident and guarantee a high level of safety.

Following recent events, on 12 September 2002 the Commission will meet with the Directors-General for Civil Aviation from the Member States and countries associated with the Union (Switzerland, Norway and Iceland) to discuss air transport safety issues.