2 Medium-term capacity planning
2.1 EUROCONTROL recommended sources
Capacity planning represents the systematic determination of resource requirements for the projected output over a specific period of time. It is a dynamic activity that relies on constantly changing data on the ATM network use, capacity forecasts, etc.
Given this, it is recommended to consult the sources below to obtain relevant up-to-date information on capacity planning.
EUROCONTROL NMD (2023), European Network Operations Plan 2023-2027[1]
The document constitutes a short- to medium-term outlook of the expected ATM network operations and performance at network and local level. It provides a detailed overview of capacity and flight efficiency enhancement measures planned at network level and by each Area Control Centre (ACC), a description of the airport performance assessment and improvement measures planned at airports generating a high level of delay. It also describes operational actions planned to be taken by the Network Manager (NM) and other stakeholders that would respond to the performance targets. Furthermore, it provides an assessment of the expected impact from these measures on the network.
EUROCONTROL NMD (2024), European Network Operations Plan (NOP) – 2024 Rolling Seasonal Plan [2]
The The European NOP Rolling Seasonal Plan focuses on the planning of the next six weeks and on the management of the execution and implementation of the 5-year NOP. Its aim is to facilitate ANSP and airport planning to match traffic demand in a safe, efficient, and coordinated manner by providing them with a consolidated European network view of the evolution of air traffic. More information about network performance (and access to dashboards and the archive) can be found on the Network Performance page.
European ATM Master Plan - implementation plan – level 3 [3] and European ATM Master Plan – implementation report – level 3 [4]
The European ATM Master Plan Level 3 (MPL3) implementation plan brings together the framework for the commonly agreed actions that ECAC Stakeholders should take in the context of the implementation of SESAR. In this respect, it addresses:
V3 validated SESAR Solutions
Common Project 1 (CP1) ATM Functionalities (AF), based on Commission IR (EU) 2021/116 on Common Project One
SESAR Baseline elements, validated or under deployment at the beginning of the SESAR Deployment phase
SES and ICAO requirements
Updated yearly, the Plan covers a short to medium-term horizon of around 5 years. It is based on the ATM MP L1 and L2,1 the SESAR Deployment Programme (SDP), the Network Strategy Plan (NSP), and the SES Interoperability Regulations. The MPL3 Implementation Plan feeds the LSSIP+ monitoring mechanism as well as the reporting process through the yearly elaboration of the MPL3 Implementation Report, which provides a holistic view of the implementation of commonly agreed actions to be taken by ECAC States, in the context of the implementation of SESAR. These actions are consolidated in the form of “Implementation Objectives” that set out the operational, technical, and institutional improvements that have to be applied to the European ATM network to meet the performance requirements for the key ATM performance areas defined in the MP Level 1 – safety, capacity, operational efficiency, cost efficiency, environment, and security.
The MPL3 Plan 2023 edition mirrors the content of the SESAR Deployment Programme (SDP) edition 2022 for what concerns the IR (EU) 2021/116 on the Common Project 1 (CP1). It also features the following changes in the Implementation Objectives: Implementation Objectives changed in status, from Initial to Active (Local); Implementation Objectives changed in status, from Active to Achieved. They are both linked to the CP1 Regulation.
The Implementation Report 2023 maps the evolution of the Master Plan implementation on the four progressive Phases of the SESAR vision (Phase A to D), as defined in the 2020 edition of the Executive view of the Master Plan, for the delivery of a Digital European Sky (DES).
Local Single Sky ImPlementation (LSSIP) documents [5]
The Local Single Sky ImPlementation (LSSIP) documents give a comprehensive overview of all ATM information for each of the ECAC Member States. They also show the ATM capacity forecasts and planning targets from the NOP. The documents reflect progress made and detail the plans for each State for the next five to seven years. LSSIP documents, one for each State, are derived from the Master Plan Level 3 (previously known as European Single Sky Implementation (ESSIP)) objectives, and stakeholder lines of action cascade down to the States.
2.3 References
There are three levels of the ATM Master Plan 2020: Level 1 - Executive view; Level 2 - Planning and architecture view; Level 3 - Implementation view.↩︎