Europe an U.S. agree to cooperate on SESAR and NextGen

Posted by John McHaleMADRID, Spain, 29 June 2010. The European Commission and the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) officially concluded negotiations of a memorandum of cooperation in civil aviation research and development. The Memorandum and a first technical Annex promotes interoperability between the FAA's Next Generation Air Transportation system (NextGen) and Europe's next generation air traffic management (ATM) system -- Single European Sky ATM Research (SESAR). The Memorandum will enable the European Union and the U.S. to jointly pursue their common objective to develop and deploy greener and more efficient air transport systems through a legally binding cooperation framework, based on commonly agreed reciprocity principles, SESAR Joint Undertaking officials say. Under the Memorandum the two parties will be able to address through cooperative activities any research and development issues in civil aviation such as: safety, security, environment, performance, alternative fuels, aircraft design, unmanned aircraft systems (UAS), sub-orbital airplanes, satellite-based communications and related ATM applications, etc.Delegations from the FAA and the European Commission signed the agreement during a meeting in Madrid, Spain.The simultaneous agreement on the first technical Annex of the Memorandum dedicated to SESAR-NextGen cooperation constitutes a major achievement for ensuring effective interoperability of the two ATM systems, SESAR Joint Undertaking officials say. For the European Union side, the activities launched under this Annex will be carried out by the SESAR Joint Undertaking ensuring an optimal coordination of European ATM modernization activities and the direct involvement of EU aviation industry. In accordance with the agreed reciprocity principles, the parties undertake to identify the opportunities available to interested parties to participate in consultative for a of each party's ATM modernization program and opportunities to each other's industry stakeholders to contribute to programs of equivalent research and development activities. Furthermore, through this agreement, the European Union and the U.S. will coordinate their technical efforts in support of global standardization of ATM systems through the International Civil Aviation Organization (ICAO). Interoperability between SESAR and NextGen is in fact essential for airspace users -- airlines in particular -- as it will enable aircraft to fly in the U.S. and in the European Union airspaces with the same equipment to navigate, communicate, and report its position, avoiding additional costs and weights, SESAR Joint Undertaking officials say.The parties already envisage to develop in the very near future additional Annexes, namely in the fields of aviation safety (for example addressing the impact of volcanic ash clouds) and of use of alternative fuels in aviation. The rapid implementation of the Annex will provide a substantial contribution to the effective deployment of SESAR and consequently to accelerating its implementation.The Commission will now propose the text for formal adoption then present it to the Council and the European Parliament for approval of its signature, in view of its entry into force in early 2011.

Europe an U.S. agree to cooperate on SESAR and NextGen

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