If you imagine a view of Europe from a height of 40,000 feet, the image can be shocking: a map of Europe crisscrossed by a tangle of lines representing air routes, many of them with unnecessary curves and detours. This image not only reflects the complexity of European air traffic, but also an inefficient and polluting reality.
While the United States manages its vast airspace with a single air traffic control system, Europe is fragmented into a mosaic of more than 40 air traffic control zones, each with its own rules, procedures and often conflicting interests. This fragmentation, inherited from a past of impassable borders and political rivalries, has a high cost for the environment and the efficiency of air transport.
La unificación del espacio aéreo europeo no es una idea nueva. Desde hace décadas se habla de la necesidad de crear un «Cielo Único Europeo» (Single European Sky, SES) que permita optimizar las rutas aéreas, reducir los tiempos de vuelo y, por ende, disminuir las emisiones contaminantes.
The benefits of a single sky are undeniable:
- Reduction of emissions: It is estimated that a single airspace could reduce CO2 emissions from European air transport by more than 10%. This translates into millions of tons of CO2 that would no longer be released into the atmosphere each year, contributing significantly to the fight against climate change.
- Optimisation of air routes: A unified system would allow aircraft to fly more direct routes, avoiding the detours and detours imposed by current fragmentation.
- Savings in time and fuel: More direct routes involve shorter flights, which translates into significant savings in time and fuel.
- Greater airspace capacity: More efficient management of airspace would allow capacity to be increased, reducing delays and congestion.
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Despite the obvious benefits, the road to a Single European Sky is fraught with obstacles, and in my view the main ones are two:
- National interests: Each country has its own civil aviation authority and its own air traffic controllers, and many are reluctant to give up sovereignty over their airspace.
- Trade union resistance: Air traffic controllers' unions fear that unification of airspace could lead to job losses, and in particular their lobbying power, which is currently very strong.
The European Union has been working for years on the creation of the Single European Sky, but progress has been slow and has met with resistance from some Member States. Some measures have been implemented, such as the creation of functional airspace blocks (FABs), but fragmentation persists and the expected benefits have not yet fully materialised.
I recently read the statements of the CEO of the company Tui (the largest European tourist travel company) in which they indicate that if there were a unified and effective organization of flights in Europe, 10% of CO2 emissions could be saved, as flights would be more direct and we would all win.
The unification of European airspace is an ambitious but achievable objective. It requires political will, cooperation between Member States and the involvement of all actors in the sector.
In a context of Climate Crisis, aviation has the unavoidable and urgent responsibility of reducing its environmental impact. A Single European Sky, with more direct and efficient routes, is a key piece in moving towards more sustainable air transport. Europe's sky cannot continue to be a puzzle of borders and inefficiencies. It is time to join forces and build a more sustainable future for aviation.
Will we ever see it? Let's hope so, but I don't think it will be soon, and I would very much like to be wrong.
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