FACT Sheet. General information. January Maastricht Upper Area Control Centre

Transcription

1 January 2013 EUROCONTROL FACT Sheet Maastricht Upper Area Control Centre General information The Maastricht Upper Area Control Centre (MUAC), operated by EUROCONTROL on behalf of four European States, provides air traffic control for the upper airspace (above 24,500 feet, or 7,500 metres) of Belgium, the Netherlands, Luxembourg and north-west Germany. The lower airspace is managed by the national air traffic control agencies Belgocontrol, Luchtverkeersleiding Nederland (LVNL) and Deutsche Flugsicherung (DFS) respectively. Located either above or close to the four major international hub terminal areas of Paris, Amsterdam, Frankfurt and London as well as other key terminal areas such as Brussels, Düsseldorf, Berlin or Copenhagen, the MUAC airspace is one of the busiest and most challenging in Europe, with a complex structure and a significant portion of climbing and descending flights up to 80% in some busy sectors. To ensure greater efficiency, the airspace is organised on a European rather than a national basis, driven not by geopolitical boundaries but by the operational requirements of traffic flows. Today, such large-scale international airspace is still unique in Europe. It represents a perfect example of European cooperation in the spirit of the Single European Sky - Europe s air traffic management integration programme, launched in In order to facilitate the closest possible cooperation between civil and military air traffic, a Deutsche Flugsicherung (DFS) unit, controlling military operations over north-west Germany, is located on MUAC s premises. Real-time radar and flightplan data is exchanged with the military aviation partners in Belgium and the Netherlands. To further improve safety, MUAC controller working positions have been deployed at the Nieuw Milligen military facility (NL) as a virtual extension of the MUAC ATC system. Over the years, MUAC has built itself a reputation for excellent safety performance and traffic fluidity on top of outstanding cost-efficiency and exceptional productivity. More than 1.5 million flights pass through MUAC s airspace each year, making it the second busiest air traffic control facility in Europe in terms of traffic volume. During the summer, there can be more than 5,200 flights per day. Over the past ten years, air traffic has increased by 23%. MUAC has been in operation since Facts and figures 07 European cooperation 08 Executive management International Certificates

2 Facts and figures Airspace size The MUAC airspace covers 260,000 km2 over Belgium, Luxembourg, the Netherlands and north-west Germany. Cross-border sectors Three main sector groups (the Brussels Sector Group, the Hannover Sector Group and the Delta/Coastal Sector Group) cover the Brussels Upper Information Region (UIR), the Hannover Upper Information Region (UIR) and the Amsterdam Flight Information Region (FIR). The sectors have been designed for maximum efficiency from the air traffic management point of view and transcend national borders. FACT Sheet January

3 Air traffic More than1.5 million IFR flights are handled each year. The daily traffic peak currently stands at 5,049 flights (summer 2012). 15% of all flights passing through the European continent use MUAC s airspace. Since 2003, overall traffic has grown by 23%, whilst delays have gone down by 93%. In the same period, the total economic cost per flight-hour also decreased by 19%. One day of traffic in the MUAC airspace (2012) 2,500,000 Minutes delay 1,500, ,534, ,540, , Traffic and delay trend ,529, ,547,325 1,447,872 1,200,000 1,429,271 1,000,000 1,465,963 1,300,000 1,386,085 1,500,000 1,296,979 1,400,000 1,243,794 2,000,000 1,100, Minutes delay

4 Although the overall results remain fairly stable over time, it is worth mentioning that Punctuality 99.7% of the flights using MUAC s services currently travel without any air traffic control-related delay. The average delay per flight is 0.04 minute. Airspace complexity The airspace managed by MUAC is one of the densest and most complex in Europe. The chart below illustrates the traffic complexity i.e. the interactions required from the air traffic controllers to process the traffic - and density faced by the different air navigation service providers in Europe*. Annual cost The annual cost amounts to 144 million (2012), pending the closure of accounts. Following the terms of the multinational agreement between the four participating countries, CNS (Communication/ Navigation/Surveillance) infrastructure is provided to MUAC free of charge by Belgocontrol, DFS and LVNL. Cost-effectiveness For the ninth consecutive year, MUAC was rated by independent assessors as one of the most cost-effective air navigation service providers in Europe. The economic gateto-gate cost effectiveness indicator for MUAC amounts to 266 per composite flight-hour (ACE 2010). The European system average stands at 544. The cost-effectiveness indicator in Europe ranges from 179 to 849*. Structural Structural Index Index Belgocontrol NATS DFS Avinor ENAV Skyguide NAVIAIR Austro Finavia Control LVNL PANSA LFV MUAC ANS CR Slovenia NAV Portugal LPS Control LGS (FIR Lisboa) Aena DSNA MoldATSA DCAC UkSATSE Cyprus DHMI HungaroControl ARMATS EANS Oro Navigacija Croatia ROMATSA MATS HCAA Control M-NAV SMATSA NATA Albania IAA BULATSA Adjusted density Adjusted density In 2012, the economic cost per flight-hour stands at 267, up by 8% on * Source: Figure ATM Cost-Effectiveness 3.3: Traffic 2010 complexity - Benchmarking metrics Report, for May ANSPs, Figure 3.3 above shows the structural complexity index and the adjusted density metric calculated at ANSP level (yearly data) for the year ANSPs with the highest overall complexity score are located in the top right corner. Moving to the left it shows FACT Sheet January 2013 ANSPs (like Avinor) with high structural complexity but lower 4 density. Moving down it shows ANSPs with high density but lower structural complexity (such as BULATSA).

5 Productivity The productivity of an air navigation service provider is a key parameter which contributes directly to its overall performance. In spite of high traffic density and airspace complexity MUAC has the highest controller productivity of all European air navigation service providers*. Productivity improvements can be achieved by optimising air traffic management and human resources and by using advanced technology to support this process. Manpower planning With the introduction of a new duty roster for operational staff, further steps have been taken towards implementing a flexible roster designed to deliver more accurate matching of staff levels to traffic demand. The introduction of Flex Shifts and Stand-by Shifts allows tactical adjustments to be made to the capacity, enabling MUAC to cope with various changes in predicted demand and cover short-term sick leave. The new roster also focuses on working conditions which are safe, healthy and sustainable for the staff, thereby ensuring continued outstanding output in the long term. Composite flight-hours per ATCO-hour European system average: MUAC Skyguide NATS DFS NAVIAIR Austro Control ANS CR NAV Portugal (FIR Lisboa) IAA PANSA EANS LVNL HungaroControl DCAC Cyprus SMATSA Aena Avinor BULATSA ENAV DHMI DSNA Belgocontrol HCAA LGS Finavia Croatia Control LPS LFV NATA Albania MATS ROMATSA Oro Navigacija Slovenia Control UkSATSE M-NAV MoldATSA ARMATS NATS DFS Aena ENAV DSNA Figure 4.7: ATCO-hour productivity (gate-to-gate), 2010 Comparison of air traffic controller productivity - European air navigation service providers * Source: ATM Cost-Effectiveness Benchmarking Report, June

6 Safety performance A number of performance indicators are used to measure safety performance. Every year, the annual safety key performance indicator is revised on the basis of the performance of the past five years, in order to bring about continuous improvements. In 2012, a year in which more than 1.5 million flights were handled, there were 33 separation infringements in which a MUAC contribution was found, either direct or shared. Of these, 2 were classified as severity-b (risk-bearing) incidents and 8 were classified as severity-c (non-risk-bearing) incidents. There was no severity-a (serious risk bearing) incident. In addition, several other indicators are measured to provide a deeper understanding of the factors contributing to safety performance and to allow trend analysis. C 8 Separation infringements 2012 B 2 E 23 D 0 A 0 SMS Maturity Scores 2010, 2011 and 2012 Safety Culture (SA1) Adoption & sharing of Best Practice (SA11) Safety Surveys & SMS Audits (SA10) Safety Performance Monitoring (SA9) 4,8 4,6 4,4 4,2 4,0 3,8 3,6 3,4 3,2 3,0 Safety Policy (SA2) Timely Compliance with International Obligations (SA3) Safety Achievement (SA4) Score 2010 Score 2011 Score 2012 Target 2013 Safety Assurance (SA8) Competency (SA5) Safety Interfaces (SA7) RISK Management (SA6) Total employees 1 January 2013 MANAGEMENT AND SUPPORT STAFF AIR TRAFFIC CONTROLLERS 672 employees, of which 296 are air traffic controllers 165 are other operational staff 146 are engineers and 65 are members of management and support staff ENGINEERS OTHER OPERATIONAL STAFF FACT Sheet January

7 European cooperation Since the early seventies, MUAC has been providing a concrete example of the political commitment entered into by four European countries (Belgium, Germany, the Netherlands and Luxembourg) to provide joint air traffic services. The international area of responsibility it covers is a perfect example of the simplification and harmonisation of airspace in Europe. Bearing in mind the efficiency of the services provided by MUAC, the advantages of this kind of international cooperation are now undeniable. MUAC can therefore be seen as a model for cross-border projects in the spirit of the Single European Sky and a functional airspace block before its time. In order to respond to the needs and future challenges of the air transport industry, MUAC and its partners are currently working on the creation of a large functional airspace block - FAB Europe Central (FABEC) - which aims to implement multinational management of the airspace of six countries (Germany, Belgium, France, Luxembourg, the Netherlands and Switzerland). The FABEC airspace accounts for 55% of all European traffic and is located above or close to the major European airports. In December 2010, the FABEC States signed the FABEC Treaty which will lead to FABEC s official implementation in December The ratification of the Treaty by the FABEC States is almost completed. 7

8 Executive management Director General, EUROCONTROL Frank Brenner MUAC Management Team Director Jac Jansen Deputy Director, Operations Ian Middleton Deputy Director, Engineering Peter Naets ATM-CNS Strategy and Development Herman BARET Strategic Development and Management Onno REITSMA International certificates In line with Single European Sky legislation, MUAC holds the certificate for the provision of air navigation services in the European Community. MUAC also holds ISO 9001:2008 certification for the provision of air traffic services, the procurement and maintenance of technical systems and the provision of professional training. For more information, please contact: Maastricht Upper Area Control Centre Communications Horsterweg AC Maastricht-Airport The Netherlands Tel: / 1219 / 1234 masuac.info@eurocontrol.int EUROCONTROL January European Organisation for the Safety of Air Navigation (EUROCONTROL) This document is published by EUROCONTROL for information purposes. It may be copied in whole or in part, provided that EUROCONTROL is mentioned as the source and it is not used for commercial purposes (i.e. for financial gain). The information in this document may not be modified without prior written permission from EUROCONTROL.