ATC Global 2009 Conference: Downturn prompts calls for improved efficiency

'Global aviation in turbulent times: the ATM challenges and solutions' was the theme of the ATC Global 2009 Conference in Amsterdam on 17-19 March, as senior industry professionals, regulators and politicians from around the world debated the complex issues facing air traffic management (ATM).

David Bryon, conference chairman and former managing director of bmibaby, emphasised that a unified approach is essential to the multiple issues confronting civil aviation. Airlines, airports and air navigation service providers (ANSPs) have regularly locked horns in the past but economic circumstances are helping to produce a rapprochement, especially since the end of the downturn could not yet be predicted with confidence, he said. Bryon told delegates: "In this tough economic climate, it's crucial that we stick together and work together."

Mark Dierikx, director general for civil aviation within the Dutch transport ministry, said that "years of hard work are required" to restore the industry to the growth to which it had been accustomed. "Air traffic is down by nearly 10 per cent compared with the same period last year," he said. "A number of regions and markets, particularly air freight, have been hit even harder. That this economic crisis is creating severe turbulence is certain."

Dierikx argued that the Single European Sky (SES) programme has an important role to play in the recovery process, as the key to solving a number of problems affecting ATM.

In particular, Dierikx identified fragmentation as a crucial hurdle to be overcome.