Commission staff working document accompanying the Proposal for a Regulation of the European Parliament and of the Council amending Regulations (EC) No 549/2004, (EC) No 550/2004, (EC) No 551/2004 and (EC) No 552/2004 in order to improve the performance and sustainability of the European aviation system - Summary of the impact assessment {COM(2008) 388 final} {SEC(2008) 2093}
Date: 2008-06-25
Institutions: European Commission
Subjects: EU financing, air safety, air space, air traffic, air transport, common transport policy, impact study, organisation of transport, trans-European network

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COMMISSION OF THE EUROPEAN COMMUNITIES 

Brussels, 25.6.2008 
SEC(2008) 2094 

COMMISSION STAFF WORKING DOCUMENT 

accompanying the 

Proposal for a 

REGULATION OF THE EUROPEAN PARLIAMENT AND OF THE COUNCIL 

amending Regulations (EC) No 549/2004, (EC) No 550/2004, (EC) No 551/2004 and (EC) 
No 552/2004 in order to improve the performance and sustainability of the European 
aviation system 

SUMMARY OF THE IMPACT ASSESSMENT 

{COM(2008) 388 final} 
{SEC(2008) 2093} 

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COMMISSION STAFF WORKING DOCUMENT 

Executive summary of the impact assessment on the proposal for a revision of the Single 
European Sky legislation 

The  impact  assessment  on  the  revision  of  the  Single  European  Sky  (SES)  legislation1 
(2008/TREN/030)  follows  the  recommendations  of  two  major  preparatory  reports:  the  High 
Level  Group  report  on  the  future  regulatory  framework  for  aviation  (July 2007)  and  the 
Performance  Review  Commission  report  on  the  ‘Evaluation  of  the  impact  of  the  Single 
European  Sky  initiative  on  ATM2  performance’  (December 2006).  The  SES  proposals  will 
form an integral part of a wider package, with two other elements: (1) the extension of EASA 
competences  to  air  traffic  management  (ATM)  and  air  navigation  services  (ANS)  (2) the 
endorsement  of  the  SESAR3  master  plan.  Because  of  their  specific  nature,  the  SESAR  and 
EASA proposals will be the subject of separate appraisals. 

The  proposals  considered  for  SES  II  do  not  introduce  new  legislation  as  such,  but  rather 
consolidate  the  previous  SES  package  (SES I)  and  add  an  overall  performance-driving 
framework.  This  framework  will  strengthen 
introduce 
environmental performance as a new area. 

the  network  approach  and 

What is the problem? 

Our current air traffic management (ATM) system is operating close to its limits and there is 
scope  for  improvement.  There  are  inefficiencies  in  cost  and  capacity  and  ATM  does  not 
restrict the environmental impact of aviation. The system is still fragmented along national 
borders, lacks good network coordination and efficient use of airspace. These problems lead 
to total additional costs of over €3bn per year. 

Sub-optimal routing (flight inefficiency) not only translates into loss of time and money, but 
also to unnecessary fuel burn and emissions. At the same time, traffic is expected to double 
or, in some regions, even triple by 2020, to a volume that current technology and organisation 
will struggle to handle safely. Increased congestion in turn leads to unmet demand, reduced 
competitiveness  and  unrealised  economic  potential  both  for  aircraft  operators  and  the 
economy at large. 

What are the main causes of the problem? 

1.  Lack  of  a  network  approach:  air  routes  were  historically  designed  as  a  function  of 
national air carrier needs or to reflect the network of traditional radio-navigation aids. While 

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Regulation (EC) No 549/2004 of the European Parliament and of the Council laying down the 
framework for the creation of the Single European Sky,  
Regulation (EC) No 550/2004 of the European Parliament and of the Council on the provision of air 
navigation services in the Single European Sky,  
Regulation (EC) No 551/2004 of the European Parliament and of the Council on the organisation and 
use of airspace in the Single European Sky, 
Regulation (EC) No 552/2004 of the European Parliament and of the Council on the interoperability of 
the European Air Traffic Management Network. 
For a list of all abbreviations used in the text, see Annex 1. 
SESAR is the Single European Sky ATM Research project, which aims to modernise the ATM system 
both technologically and operationally. For more information see 
http://ec.europa.eu/transport/air_portal/sesame/index_en.htm and http://www.sesar-consortium.aero/. 

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navigation  technology  and  the  needs  of  airspace  users  have  changed  significantly,  the  route 
network  does  not  reflect  these  changes.  As  routes  channel  fee-paying  traffic  through 
predetermined  territories,  hence  determining  the  income  of  service  providers,  the  national 
approach  has  led  to  cross-country  flight  efficiency  being  a  secondary  concern  in  route 
network  design.  The  situation 
is  further  complicated  by  sub-optimal  civil-military 
cooperation.  

2. Insufficient oversight of natural monopolies: air traffic management is mostly a natural 
monopoly  (one  service  provider  in  each  block  of  airspace  due  to  technical  constraints  and 
sunk investment costs), which prevents efficiencies through competition. This system and the 
corresponding full-cost recovery mechanism do not incentivise service providers to improve 
their services to customers (i.e. airspace users). Instead, it contributes to a ‘live and let live’ 
attitude.  

3.  Governance:  while  the  Single  Sky  legislation  brought  air  traffic  management  under  the 
Community umbrella, essential obligations were left to national discretion. Some elements of 
the  system  also  remain  the  responsibility  of  intergovernmental  structures  with  limited 
enforcement  powers.  The  current  institutional  arrangements  for  ATM  are  not  in  line  with 
industry  developments  (corporatisation,  privatisation,  etc.)  and  require  a  clear  separation  of 
policy- and law-making from oversight functions and service provision. 

What are the main policy objectives? 

The over-arching objective of the revision of the Single Sky legislation is to ensure that the 
ATM system effectively provides the infrastructure for the aviation industry and other users 
so that the Lisbon objectives can be fulfilled. Performance must focus on four key areas — 
cost-efficiency, flight efficiency, capacity/delays and safety. Environmental protection will be 
added in the revised package as an explicit objective, as a key area for service provision and a 
criterion for route network design. 

What are the main tools for achieving the policy objectives? 

The  proposals  aim  to  drive  the  performance  of  the  ATM  system.  A  regulatory  framework 
with  target  setting  will  gradually  ensure  this.  The  network  approach  will  be  enhanced  to 
solve  local  problems  with  system-wide  effects.  Wherever  possible,  the  unbundling  of 
services  should  be  considered  with  a  view  to  introducing  competition.  This  performance 
framework  should  ensure  more  efficient  integration  of  service  provision  within  functional 
airspace blocks (FABs). 

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