EUROCONTROL issues its ATM Cost-effectiveness Benchmarking Report for 2009

ACE Report 2009

EUROCONTROL has issued its 9th ATM Cost-effectiveness Benchmarking Report (ACE).

ACE Report 2009

The report analyses the cost-effectiveness of 37 European Air Navigation Service Providers (ANSPs) in 2009, examines trends between 2005 and 2009 and gives a forward-looking assessment of performance for the period 2010-2014.

Total costs for the European Air Navigation system in 2009 were around €8630M, of which some 88% (€7580M) related directly to the provision of ATM/CNS services. The system is fragmented, with 32 ANSPs bearing 40% of these costs.

In 2009, the economic downturn caused an unprecedented traffic decrease across the European system (-7%), cancelling out three years of traffic growth. This helped reducing air traffic flow management delays. However, as ATM/CNS provision costs continued to rise in 2009 (+1.5%), unit costs increased significantly (+9.2%). A major theme in this report is to analyse the response of the ANS industry to the traffic shock, such as the implementation of cost-containment measures by the ANSPs.

“The historical and forward-looking benchmarking analysis in ACE reports proves to be key information for ANS stakeholders in the process leading to the adoption of national Performance Plans for the first reference period (2012-2014) under the Single European Sky” said Xavier Fron, Head of the PRU.

“Experience has shown that ACE Benchmarking Reports are useful tools for ANSPs, in particular, to identify and promote best practices towards improved ATM performance. The ACE factual and independent benchmarking has also been one of the main inputs considered for determining the EU-wide cost-efficiency target” said Peter Griffiths, Chairman of the Performance Review Body.

Access the ACE 2009 Report

Read the ANSPs fact sheets for 2009