Tsjechisch voorzitterschap trots op akkoord nieuwe regels voor één Europees luchtruim (en)

Met dank overgenomen van Tsjechisch voorzitterschap Europese Unie 1e helft 2009 i, gepubliceerd op woensdag 25 maart 2009.

During the Czech Presidency the Member States and the European Parliament reached a consensus on two legislative proposals.

The proposals will contribute towards more efficient operation of the single market of the Community (in full correspondence with the motto of the Czech Presidency a “Europe without Barriers”) and sustainable and safe development of air transport. This proposal was adopted at the plenary session of the European Parliament on 25 March 2009.

One of the proposals addresses revisions of regulations establishing the concept of a Single European Sky and the second regulation extends the competence of the European Aviation Safety Agency to the area of airspace and airports.

 “I see reaching this compromise as a great accomplishment of the Czech Presidency,” stated Czech Transport Minister and President of the EU Transport Council.

“This agreement will secure more effective operation of air traffic in Europe. The new rules should result in cutting the durations of flights and reducing the consumption of fuel and production of emissions,” added Petr Bendl.

Both regulations respond to the current insufficiencies in the area of air traffic management and in providing aviation navigation services; they also support development of new technologies and contribute towards reaching a balance between the capacity of airports and airspace. The airlines welcome the adoption of these rules. According to the Commission’s estimates, flight duration should be cut by 8 – 14 minutes and the consumption of fuel should decrease by 7 – 11 percent per flight.

By the extension of its competence to include airspace and the area of airports the European Aviation Safety Agency will gain a complex scope of authority in all areas relating to operational safety of civil aviation. It is projected that in the future these areas will continue to adopt individual harmonised rules that will contribute towards increasing the safety of air transport.

The accomplishment of the Czech Presidency can be seen also in the fact that consensus was reached not only among the 27 EU Member States but an agreement with the European Parliament was also reached. The adoption of these legislative proposals comes less than 9 months after their publication by the European Commission.

 

Contact:

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    Lada Hlavácková, Spokeswoman of the Ministry of Transport
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    Tel.: +420 225 131 530, GSM: +420 607 946 989, E-mail: lada.hlavackova@mdcr.cz