ENAV (the national company that manages civil air traffic in Italy) and IATA (International Air Transport Association) today presented the first edition of the Italian National Airspace Strategy.
Over the next 20 years, according to forecasts, air traffic will grow by 50% across Europe. The objective of the Italian Air Traffic Management (ATM) system is to satisfy this demand. The airlines and ENAV have joined forces to continue improving performance by reducing costs and delays and mitigating environmental impact.
It is expected that by 2035, thanks to an efficient airspace, there could be significant benefits for Italy, including a annual GDP increase of 27 billion euros and 95.000 new jobs.
The National Airspace Strategy was jointly developed by IATA and ENAV with the collaboration of Alitalia and Assaeroporti. The strategy includes a number of initiatives on airspace modernization agreed with key players in the sector. This will guarantee the continuous evolution of the Italian aeronautical system and will contribute to the national economy, as well as contribute to the efficiency of the European and global air transport system.
For ENAV, the airspace represents a strategic and central infrastructure. The Free Route it is already a reality in Italy that has guaranteed benefits in terms of fuel savings, CO2 emissions and costs. ENAV is one of the best performing service providers in Europe in terms of punctuality.
L'CEO of ENAV Roberta Neri said: “Customers are at the heart of our business. We greatly appreciate this collaboration with IATA, Alitalia and Assaeroporti, aimed at guaranteeing a safe and sustainable growth of air transport in Italy, for the benefit of passengers and the economy in general, creating value for all stakeholders. I strongly believe that this initiative is only a starting point and will involve further airlines, airports and sector operators. Under the supervision of national authorities and our regulator, ENAC, we can work together to ensure a long-term positive future of the Italian aviation system”.
Rafael Schvartzman, IATA Regional Vice President for Europe he declared: “Italy is a strategic market for air transport, the fourth largest in Europe, so planning for the future is of fundamental importance. Our research shows that performance in air traffic management provides a solid foundation for contributing to growth and economic efficiency. ENAV's leadership on the Italian airspace strategy is therefore extremely significant. Our close collaboration with ENAV will guarantee an optimization of the Italian airspace, bringing enormous economic benefits to the country".
Valentina Lener, General Manager of Assaeroporti, declared "the Italian association of airport managers has welcomed the initiative launched by IATA and ENAV, aware of the importance of implementing a strategy for the modernization of the Italian airspace capable of facing the significant challenges that the sector will have to face in the next few years, including the saturation of the capacity of the airspace itself and of the airport infrastructures. Airports can only be an integral part of this strategy also in light of the central role they play in intercepting national and international passenger and cargo traffic flows. Adopting modernization measures is certainly a fundamental step to foster the competitiveness of the entire sector.”
Alessandro Cardi, ENAC Deputy Director General he said: “This initiative represents a very positive exercise and the Authority will give its support to any agreement that may result from it. In fact, the lack of airport capacity, which was already experienced last summer, is a strong signal to steer the activities that must be carried out by all the players in the aeronautical system in the right direction. In the near future, the airline sector is called upon to supply ever greater capacity to cope with the expected growth in traffic. And this will only be possible if a high level of cooperation can be established between air navigation service providers, air carriers and airport operators. ENAC will support any initiative able to achieve this cooperation in a profitable way”.
The Italian National Air Strategy is divided into the following points:
· Outline the strategic guidelines for the future of ATM in Italy;
· Airspace modernization initiatives to support safety, capacity and efficient routes that reduce fuel consumption while improving environmental performance;
· Technological development of ground and on-board systems;
· Collaboration with Italian civil aviation stakeholders;
· Cooperation with European partners to accelerate the achievement of Single European Sky (SES) objectives.
