3.2 Performance ambition

The vision is driven by the need to improve ATM in key performance areas (see Figure 2) in line with the SES performance framework (1), covering safety, the environment, capacity and cost-efficiency. These areas are complemented by additional performance areas, described in this section. While these performance areas are complementary and interdependent, it is widely acknowledged that to achieve much higher levels of environmental performance the ATM system will need to be designed to handle significantly more capacity than it does today.

Accordingly, the future ATM system should be designed to:

• continuously improve safety levels as traffic increases and becomes more complex to manage;
• avoid any negative climate impact due to ATM on the ground and in the air (sustainability) – as the challenge to achieve climate neutrality goes beyond CO₂ emissions, the future design of the system should be able to adapt to minimise the total impact of aviation on the climate, while addressing noise and local air quality;
• help transform the way capacity is delivered, enabling service providers to dynamically and collaboratively scale capacity up or down (scalability and resilience) in line with all demand (both civil and military, and crewed and uncrewed) – these capacity adjustments should be implemented within minutes and ensure the optimal and cost-effective use of resources (airspace, data, infrastructure and human–machine teaming) at any moment;
• ensure that data flow effectively and securely between trusted users (security);
• address evolving security and defence needs, providing flexibility within a civil–military ATM environment (security and defence) (2);
• improve the overall passenger experience.

To achieve optimal performance, improvements should also be made in the following areas.

• Predictability ensures that flights follow expected patterns and schedules.
• Punctuality relates to the timing of departures and arrivals.
• Cost-efficiency refers to optimum resource allocation, productivity and the effective use of technologies and rationalisation (e.g. infrastructure).
   

Figure 2: Performance areas in support of overall passenger experience

See Chapter 7 for details of the expected performance benefits.