THE IRISH and British governments have signed a joint air traffic agreement that they claim will benefit airline passengers through cost savings and safety improvements.
The navigation deal, involving the pooling of resources among air traffic authorities in both countries, will reduce congestion for aircraft flying through each jurisdiction by creating “enhanced” flight routes and reducing delays, the governments said.
Up to now, Irish and British airspace was controlled by the relevant authorities in each country.
This is being replaced by what is called a Functional Airspace Block (FAB).
Existing arrangements in Europe are established according to national boundaries, whereas FABs are built around traffic flows.
Announcing details of the agreement, Minister for Transport Noel Dempsey said: “The new arrangements will focus on improving the capacity of the air traffic management system and in providing for optimal flight paths for airlines. For the airline customer this will help to avoid undesirable delays due to air traffic control restrictions and sub-optimal routings.
“There will be benefits for airlines in terms of reduced delays and fuel savings over the short term.”
A spokeswoman for Mr Dempsey said 90 per cent of air traffic coming from the north Atlantic corridor passed through the combined airspace of Britain and Ireland. Passengers flying from Ireland and Britain to Europe and other destinations would also benefit.
The Government spokeswoman said the new deal was not expected to involve a major cost to the stakeholders, adding it was hoped the co-operative approach would be seamless and one that ensured flight take-off and landing times were more efficient.
She said the new deal was finalised at yesterday’s meeting of the Council of Ministers for Transport in Luxembourg by Mr Dempsey and the British minister of state for transport, Rosie Winterton.
Ms Winterton said: “By working together to design and manage airspace we will reduce the amount of fuel that planes use, resulting in improved environmental performance.”
Acting on the instructions of the governments, discussions began in 2005 between the Irish Aviation Authority (IAA) and the National Air Traffic Services Ltd (NATS), which provides air traffic control services at 15 of the UK’s biggest airports.
Lilian Cassin, IAA corporate communications manager, said the relevant Irish and UK trade unions had signed up to the agreement following consultation, and it was envisaged there would be no job losses.