2000 – 2010: Reaching for a Single European Sky

Starting with the terrorist attacks from September 2001 and ending with the volcanic ash crisis in April 2010, the first decade of the new millennium was by far the most challenging period for EUROCONTROL and for the entire European aviation community.

Both crises highlighted the need for centrally coordinated European airspace. At the beginning of the new century, the greatest problem in air traffic management was air traffic congestion and attendant delays - with safety naturally remaining a priority. The decade began with the launch of the ATM 2000+ Strategy, aimed at creating a seamless European air traffic management system.

EUROCONTROL’s European ATM Programme introduced key operational applications and functions for the aviation community, helping to increase capacity and improve air-ground communications. These include Reduced Vertical Separation Minima, ADS-B Mode-S transponders and Data-Link Communications.

The idea of centrally organised and managed European airspace was formulated in the European Commission’s legislative initiative, the Single European Sky, aimed at meeting future air traffic growth in a safer and more effective way.

While safety and capacity are still major issues for the air transport industry, greater emphasis has been placed in recent years on the environment, cost-efficiency and the need for common ATM regulations across Europe, issues which were tackled in the Single European Sky second package (SES II).

Although air traffic has been steadily growing, European airspace can still accommodate increased traffic volumes at lower cost and with less environmental impact. Practically 10 million annual flights were handled in 2009 - and this figure is expected to rise to 16 million by 2020, but the foundations of Europe's next generation ATM system will have been laid during this decade.

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