ENAIRE and DSNA meet with EUROCONTROL at the Marseille Control Centre to follow up on airspace management projects

Enrique Maurer and Florian Guillermet, the respective directors of ENAIRE and DSNA, the air navigation service providers in Spain and France, met at the Marseille Air Traffic Control Centre, together with the Director of the EUROCONTROL Network Management  Iacopo Prissinotti, to consolidate the progress made in coordinaing and improving the operating procedures at cross-border airspace.

The aim is to explore improvements to the current interfaces that support the various air traffic flows of ENAIRE and DSNA at the air traffic control centres in Madrid and Barcelona with Bordeaux, Brest and Marseille.

The three are analysing initiatives to improve procedures between Barcelona and Bordeaux, as well as at the Madrid-Bordeaux, Madrid-Brest and Barcelona-Marseille interfaces

They took advantage of the meeting to monitor ongoing projects and initiatives for the summer season. The technical work of both countries was also discussed, with a special focus on the interface between the airspaces of Spain and France.

In addition, during the meeting, the two directors of ENAIRE and DSNA reviewed and endorsed the joint initiatives between Spain and France, which are consistent with EUROCONTROL's actions and are intended to make the design and use of the network of routes between the two countries more efficient, in terms of additional improvements in the Barcelona-Bordeaux interface itself, collateral connections between the Bordeaux and Brest control centres and the Madrid control centre, and the interface between the Marseille and Barcelona control centres.

Lower atmospheric emissions

During the meeting, the network measures elaborated by the EUROCONTROL Network Manager were also reviewed, where ENAIRE, as it did in 2022, will play an important role in handling traffic to the benefit of the European network.

They also reviewed both countries' initiatives to implement the Free-Route feature, which will be used to design more efficient airspace routes and help airlines save fuel, as well as reduce atmospheric emissions.

In the technical field, the officials reviewed joint initiatives to share information from the air traffic management systems used by the two providers, as well as to migrate both countries fully to Mode S surveillance, which will provide for enhanced coverage and improved performance between the two airspace interfaces.

EUROCONTROL, represented by its Network Management Director, Iacopo Prissinotti, participated with its management team to support the important work that is being done by both providers to improve the efficiency of the interface between Spain and France, to benefit the smooth functioning of air traffic in both countries, positively contributing to the entire network of European routes.

Both Maurer and Guillermet noted the spirit of collaboration and proactivity of both countries to improve the operating procedures for their mutual benefit and to boost the overall efficiency of the network.

About ENAIRE

ENAIRE is the air navigation service provider in Spain.

As a company of the Ministry of Transport, Mobility and the Urban Agenda, it provides en route control services for all flights and overflights from five control centres in Madrid, Barcelona, Seville, Gran Canaria and Palma, as well as approach services to every airport in the country.

In addition, 46 airports receive ENAIRE's communication, navigation and surveillance services, and 21 airports, including the country's busiest, rely on its aerodrome control services.

ENAIRE is Europe's fourth largest air traffic manager and participates in the A6 Alliance, a coalition of air navigation providers responsible for over 80% of European air traffic, and which is seeking to modernise the air traffic management system. It is also a member of other international alliances promoting the Single European sky, such as SESAR Joint Undertaking, SESAR Deployment Manager, iTEC, CANSO and ICAO.

ENAIRE, as the agency appointed by the Ministry of Transport, Mobility and Urban Agenda to implement the U-space system in Spain, will be the provider of the Common Information Services (CIS), which are essential for administering U-space services to drones and Urban Air Mobility, in interaction with local air traffic control services, so that all types of aircraft can fly safely in the same airspace.

ENAIRE has received the highest score in Europe on the aviation safety key performance indicator. It has also been awarded the EFQM 500 Seal for its safe, efficient, innovative and sustainable management of air navigation services.

About DSNA

DSNA (Direction des Services de la Navigation Aérienne) mission consists of controlling air traffic in a safe, fluid and eco-responsible manner in one of the busiest airspaces in the world. France is located at the crossroads of the major European air traffic routes and covers an airspace of 1 million km².

The French Air Navigation Service Provider handles around 3 million flights per year with the highest daily traffic peaks in Europe. It is very involved to promote a Greener Aviation and to improve flight efficiency.

DSNA is member of FABEC, SESAR and the A6 Alliance.

Key Data of DSNA: 5 ACCs & 75 Control Towers & 3 overseas regional structures / Staff: 6,900.

www.ecologie.gouv.fr

About EUROCONTROL

EUROCONTROL is a pan-European, civil-military organisation dedicated to supporting European aviation. As Europe’s Network Manager, the organisation plays a central coordination role, using its technical expertise to support Member States and a wide range of stakeholders (air navigation service providers, civil and military airspace users, airports and aircraft/equipment manufacturers). EUROCONTROL strives to make European aviation safe, efficient, scalable, cost-effective and environmentally sustainable, partnering with the European Union to make the Single European Sky a reality.