What it does

What – help modernise Europe’s air traffic management system, bringing improvements in costs, capacity, safety and environmental impact.

How – by coordinating and bringing together all relevant research and development efforts within the EU, thereby ensuring that research results are applied effectively in the field.

Structure

The SESAR Joint Undertaking was set up under Council Regulation (EC) 219/2007. It can set up public-private partnerships, funded jointly by industry and the EU, to help carry out its duties and disburse funds.

Its Administrative Board and the Executive Director's office, the main executive governance bodies, administer SESAR programmes and carry out other duties. They have a staff of 39 full –time equivalents.

The Board comprises representatives from:

• the European Commission
• Eurocontrol
• public-private partnerships
• interested parties from EU & national institutions.

How it works

The SESAR1 and SESAR2020 programmes coordinate research into air traffic management (ATM). Both are structured as an ‘innovation pipeline’ with the following maturity phases:

• exploratory research
• industrial research & validation
• very large-scale demonstrations

The SESAR Joint Undertaking also maintains and implements the European ATM master plan for modernising air traffic management and linking SESAR R&D with deployment. It continues to provide specialist support to the European Commission on all other subjects relating to the 'Single European Sky' initiative.

SESAR1 runs to the end of 2016, while SESAR2020 will continue with different public-private partnership members until 2024.

Who benefits

The SESAR Joint Undertaking plays an essential role in implementing the EU’s 'Single European Sky' initiative. It therefore brings significant social and airspace-user benefits in the context of the wider initiative. By rationalising European airspace, 'Single European Sky' will:

• cut costs
• reduce environmental impact
• increase capacity
• make the air traffic management system more efficient, with benefits including shorter travelling times & improved safety.