Single European Sky and the functional airspace blocks: Will they improve economic efficiency?

Abstract

The paper examines the potential economic efficiency of on-going changes in the European air traffic control system. Air navigation services in Europe are undergoing a process of consolidation and technological changes known as the Single European Sky initiative. The ultimate aim is to shift the industry from a paradigm based on national borders, to one where operational efficiency is the goal. One of the key components of the movement toward this is the notion of functional airspace blocks (FABs) whereby blocks of airspace are combined as a precursory to total unification of the system. To study the effects that those changes might have on the economic efficiency of the system, a data envelopment analysis framework is used. Although these FABs are not yet deployed, it is possible to simulate, ceteris paribus, how these different systems would have ranked in terms of economic efficiency by using data for each individual air navigation service provider.