The European Commission and aviation stakeholders should come back to the discussion table to clarify the ambition of the new Single European Sky (SES) Regulation, says the EESC in a newly adopted opinion.
It remains unclear, in fact, whether the Commission’s draft proposal will be enough to achieve the SES’s original goals in terms of reducing CO2 emissions and improving the efficiency of air traffic management and air navigation services (ATM/ANS).
The EESC flagged up the issue in an opinion drafted by Dumitru Fornea and adopted at the plenary session.
Commenting during the debate, Mr Fornea said: “the function of the network manager needs to be clarified, especially the overall scope and its impact on airline planning, capacity management, airspace design, the environment and the prioritisation of demands. All stakeholders in aviation should be involved in reaching major decisions; the principle of meaningful consultation needs to be part of the framework proposal”.
The Commission proposal also lacks any reference to the dramatic consequences of the COVID-19 crisis on the industry. In this regard, the EESC recommends carrying out an impact study in order to give proper consideration to the social and economic consequences of the coronavirus pandemic for both workers and service users. (mp)
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