RESOLUTION OF THE COUNCIL AND THE MINISTERS FOR TRANSPORT, MEETING WITHIN THE COUNCIL of 18 July 1989 on air traffic system capacity problems (89/C 189/02)

THE COUNCIL OF THE EUROPEAN COMMUNITIES AND THE MINISTERS FOR TRANSPORT, MEETING WITHIN THE COUNCIL,

Considering that the existence of an efficient air transport system will contribute to the unhindered movement of people and goods within the Community;

Considering that the smooth running of the air transport system will improve the implementation of the common transport policy in the field of civil aviation;

Considering that air transport in Europe is at present under considerable strain due to air traffic congestion, especially at seasonal peaks, and that saturation of the available airspace is one of the primary causes of this congestion;

Considering that this situation is partly due to the frequent lack of coordination between national air traffic services in air traffic control and in air traffic flow management;

Considering that a large number of international conferences and organizations such as the International Civil Aviation Organization (ICAO), the European Civil Aviation Commission (ECAC), the North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO) and the European Organization for the Safety of Air Navigation (Eurocontrol) are involved in air traffic control;

Considering that on 20 October 1988 the Ministers for Transport, meeting within the ECAC, adopted a set of decisions and that those decisions should be implemented with the utmost speed and efficiency;

Considering that the International Convention relating to Cooperation for the Safety of Air Navigation has made Eurocontrol the appropriate instrument to take the necessary measures to solve the problems currently existing in Europe;

Considering that Community action in the field of air traffic control should avoid both duplication of effort and the introduction of new institutional measures parallel to the existing international organizations which are competent in this field, especially Eurocontrol;

Considering, however, that the Community has legal instruments which are binding on the Member States and which, if appropriate, might prove suitable for ensuring effective and coordinated implementation of the decisions or recommendations adopted by other international organizations,

HEREBY ADOPT THIS RESOLUTION:

(a) Member States which are not members of Eurocontrol are invited to consider acceding, at the earliest opportunity, as contracting parties to the International Convention relating to Cooperation for the Safety of Air Navigation (Eurocontrol).

Those Member States which are already contracting parties to the said Convention will strive, within Eurocontrol, to adopt, where appropriate, measures aimed at facilitating the accession of any other Member State to the said organization;

(b) Member States undertake to strive for the Commission's being accorded observer status in the Eurocontrol Management Committee;

(c) Member States will cooperate to establish a single air traffic flow management centre, as decided by the ECAC in Frankfurt on 20 October 1988;

(d) The development of the Eurocontrol Central Data Bank should be encouraged and forecast techniques constantly improved;

(e) The need to make progress within Eurocontrol in working out a common approach towards air traffic control is highlighted;

(f) It is very important to revitalize and improve the Cooperation Agreement between the Community and Eurocontrol ; the Commission's participation in studies and research programmes (e.g. the Phare programme) should be encouraged and possible financial contributions considered;

(g) Efforts should be made in the relevant fora to make progress in establishing compatible technical and performance specifications for air traffic control systems and equipment;

(h) Improvement of systems for recruiting and training controllers on common bases is of importance with a view to achieving mutual recognition of certificates or diplomas and, as far as possible, freedom of movement for air traffic controllers;

(i) Member States should cooperate within Eurocontrol to ensure that more airspace is made available for civil traffic and that it is used more flexibly and rationally;

(j) The creation of crisis management units should be maintained and encouraged as an instrument for finding urgent solutions to specific cases of congestion;

(k) Member States recognize the desirability of implementing, if appropriate by means of Community legal instruments and within the framework of the powers provided for in the Treaty establishing the European Economic Community, the decisions or resolutions adopted in the context of air traffic control by the international organizations involved, with the aim of guaranteeing effective and coordinated implementation of the necessary measures to tackle European airspace congestion.