SESAR demonstrations pave the way for implementation of emissions-saving air traffic procedures
On 4 April, France’s air navigation service provider, DSNA, implemented a new procedure at Ajaccio Airport aimed at reducing fuel burn and CO2 emissions, while avoiding noise sensitive zones. The procedure was among a series of similar initiatives demonstrated at scale by ten European airports by a now-closed SESAR project.
An Airbus A320neo from Air Corsica flew the procedure for the first time into Ajaccio Airport. This advanced type of performance based-navigation (PBN) procedure is called RNP AR (required navigation performance with authorisation required), allowing certified crew and aircraft to approach and land from the north of Ajaccio by overflying a mountainous region, even in adverse meteorological conditions.
The implementation comes following extensive trials by the RISE (RNP implementation synchronised in Europe) project in 2016. The partners conducted more than 500 demonstration flights using the PBN procedures at 10 European airports, namely Madeira, Nice, Ajaccio, Corfu, Iraklion, Mykonos, Santorini, Paphos and Larnaca. The results of the project highlighted the benefits linked to the use of these procedures in terms of accessibility, safety enhancement, trajectory repeatability, avoidance of sensitive zones, track miles and fuel consumption reduction.
