ANSPs renew spirited drive on Single African Sky objective; but can they safely overfly snags that led to past failures.

How Sustainable Is ANSPs' Rekindled Campaign For Single African Sky?

The vision of a Single African Sky (SAS) has been pursued with varying degrees of lukewarm commitment by aviation partners in Africa over the years. Similarly, some policy pundits have sought the establishment of the all-important Single African Aviation Policy, which is seen as a key requirement for the successful execution of the SAS. This single aviation policy is also yet to be actualized for reasons sometimes believed could be more political than technical. In the same vein, the march towards the realization of the age-long Yamoussoukro Decision (YD) has not been as speedy as it is meant to be. It, therefore, needs to regain vigour and force of actualization, as some proponents now think the YD need be realigned with current and future industry realities considering some of its (now anachronistic) basic make-ups.

And, though the Air Navigation Service Providers (ANSPs) in Africa had sought to kick-start the achievement of a Single African Sky from the air navigation services perspective, their meetings, held previously in Dakar in 2002, and then, Johannesburg in 2004 on this subject-matter have lacked necessary follow-up action and purposeful regularity. This explains why there exists no definite commonality of framework upon which to strive for a realizable SAS variously professed as capable of improving flight efficiency and safety, and removing cumbersome air traffic management on the continent. Besides, fostering cohesion among regions in Africa, the SAS is expected to accelerate air transport development on the continent, in its proper sense.
While all these efforts on the SAS, YD and single African aviation policy have not yet produced the needed result for Africa, they have succeeded in creating a consciousness for coalescing fragmented efforts in Africa to quicken the development of the continent's air transport system. Today, what is incontestable is that African ANSPs realize the folly of continuing in a continuum of (sometimes discordant and) uncoordinated air traffic services systems, recognizing that the harmonization of their resources would elicit far much greater benefits for the continent.

ANSPs Special Work Group On SAS

So, when African ANSPs gathered in Cotonou, Republic of Benin, last November with their partners from other regions, it became even clearer that African ANSPs have a shared resolve to transit totally to a service regime whereby their infrastructure and personnel know-how are harmonized and effectively coordinated throughout Africa. This meeting, the third, held some six years after the penultimate ANSPs meeting in Johannesburg, provided the platform to hammer out realizable modalities for achieving the SAS.

As a first step, the ANSPs meeting in Cotonou set up a workgroup comprised of the Agency for the Regulation of Air Navigation in Africa and Madagascar (ASECNA), Nigerian Airspace Management Agency (NAMA), Establishment National de la Navigation Arienne (ENNA) of Algeria, Air Traffic Navigation Services (ATNS) of South Africa, Office National des Aeroports (ONDA) of Morocco and Kenya, to develop a framework, or work guideline, for the actualization of the SAS, which will be extensively reviewed at the next meeting of the ANSPs in 2012 to be hosted by ENNA of Algeria.

And at a roundtable interaction moderated by the Aviation & Allied Business Journal and involving over 150 participants from Africa, European Union, US, Canada as well as representation from ICAO, IATA, International Federation of Air Traffic Controllers Associations (IFATCA), as well as World Meteorological Organization (WMO) and African Civil Aviation Commission (AFCAC), the meeting drew in additional contributions from other ANSPs and partners including regulators and equipment manufacturers, in order to expand the range of inputs for the workgroup. Another significant outcome of the roundtable was the agreement to institute periodic meetings of African ANSPs at which improvements on air traffic services personnel and facilities, as well as progress on the SAS objective can be reviewed.

In effect, the workgroup would put all the variables in Africa into sharper focus, from the current state of ATM in Africa - including challenges and capabilities - to future ATM regime under ICAO guidelines, so that ANSPs can actually take their proper place in leading efforts on the attainment of SAS in Africa at a timeline to yet be determined.

While this workgroup would strive over the next two years to produce an acceptable initial working platform, it is expected that other partners from within and outside Africa send in useful inputs to beef-up the expected draft working guideline, since this is one of the turning points needed to bolster aviation development in Africa.

Eye On The Ball

As the Single African Sky re-emerges as a strong area of focus, Mr. Yusuf Mahamat, immediate-past Director General of ASECNA, is convinced that though this is a huge task the available expertise in Africa can achieve it. He adds that "we need to take the best decision for our region," saying "Single African Sky must be a reality."

Mr. Meissa Ndiaye, Director of Operations at ASECNA headquarters in Dakar, tells AFI ANSPs that "we can't do anything without collaboration," pointing out the importance of achieving seamless and efficient ATM services in Africa. Particularly, he stresses that information management capability needs to be strengthened among ANSPs in the AFI region, and ASECNA would share experience towards achieving the Single African Sky programme.

Similarly, Mr. Rushj Lehutso of ATNS South Africa, says the limited success achieved since the 2002 declaration in Dakar and 2004 declaration in Gauteng is disturbing, as he calls for quicker concrete action towards harmonizing air traffic services in Africa.

For Brahim Lakhlifi of ONDA, he stresses the need to protect the environment and enhance safety in the pursuit of the Single African Sky. Morocco has agreements with Eurocontrol and European Union, including open skies, in the quest to boost traffic into Morocco. Mr. Lakhlifi says ONDA also has the objective of achieving harmonization of ATM with the AFI region.

Mr. Wodiaba Samake, Chief of Air Navigation Department of ASECNA, says harmonized regulation of the upper airspace and reduced area control centres for upper airspace, amongst others, are important for the AFI region. Noting the need to drive the Single Sky project with appropriate new technology, he says ASECNA has achieved interoperability in its 17 African States, and this should serve as a model for harmonization and interoperability in the larger AFI region. As a pre-condition for such harmonization, Mr. John Onyegiri of the NAMA says gap audit is essential to ascertain the present state of facilities among AFI ANSPs.

Further on achieving the Single African Sky, Kenya draws attention to the challenge of brain drain, calling for a think-thank on building air navigation service technology knowledge-base in Africa. Tanzania, echoed by Cote d'Ivoire, equally emphasizes on the essence of training to update personnel on new technology and to achieve capacity build-up for ANSPs on the continent.

Providing airlines' perspective on the Single African Sky, Mr. Gnassou Konate, IATA's Regional Director for Safety Operations & Infrastructure, says improvement in safety and efficiency would boost sustainability, traffic and revenue, re-emphasizing that ANSPs need to increase staff efficiency. Future ATM systems, he says, must be performance-based, with collaborative decision-making, and driven by user needs. The Cotonou meeting clarified that Single African Sky does not necessarily entail a single service provider, per se; the concept rather emphasizes on harmonized and interoperable ATM systems.

The AFI region should learn from the mistakes and challenges that have faced other Single Sky programmes like the Single European Sky project.

Some Technical Issues & Challenges

Essentially, ICAO provides technical guidelines for safe and efficient air traffic management, and, going forward, ICAO has recommended the development and adoption of largely satellite-based improvements in this regard which is referred to as future ATM systems. These would enhance seamless interoperable regional and global CNS/ATM. The ICAO guidelines provide bases for the development of the EU SESAR and the US Next-Gen programmes which both aim at achieving single skies within these regions, respectively, and seamless ATM interoperability with other regions. In the same vein, the Single African Sky programme should be driven on ICAO's future ATM systems.

Thus, the presence of inadequate and obsolete ATM facilities, as well as lack of interoperable facilities is seen as a key challenge for the AFI region. Emphasis in the region should, therefore, now be on ATM infrastructure that allows for interoperability, harmonized systems and cost-efficiency. And equipment providers must reflect this understanding in their product designs. It is important also that airlines and ANSPs key into these emerging systems.

Meanwhile, AFI ANSPs need to effectively manage the RVSM which has been implemented in Africa, as traffic grows. And essentially, the transition from existing aspects of ATM systems such as from AFTN to AHMS or AIS to AIM, for instance, need be properly managed with due guidelines from ICAO. Mr. Prosper Zoomintoo of ICAO's East African Regional Office underlines the need to improve operational management in line with emerging needs of the industry. Mr. Zoo'Mintoo says AFI needs to be abreast with other regions in ATM, saying ANSPs in AFI region must come together and have a voice at international (ICAO) fora. What is equally vital is Mr. Rushj Lehutso's comment that ANSPs need to approach governments with a single message of driving political support and funding. And ANSPs' objectives towards the Single African Sky must have clear action plan and timelines.

PBN

It is important that States meet the Performance-Based Navigation (PBN) requirements of ICAO, which has huge cost and efficiency benefits. It is expected in the short term, 2008-2012, that States achieve 50% PBN implementation; and between 2013 and 2016, the target of 100% PBN implementation is expected among States. Realizing this object, ANSPs must work proactively with Civil Aviation Authorities (CAAs) in PBN implementation in AFI region. There are opinions that ANSPs should also create sub-groups and regional bodies to drive implementation of PBN in the AFI region.

ADS-B & Multilateration

The Automatic Dependent Surveillance Broadcast (ADS-B) which is a satellite-based ATM system is being weighed up within ASECNA States, says Mr. Meissa Ndiaye, ASECNA's Director of Operations. However, ADS-B is being implemented in Kinshasa FIR because of Congo's large airspace that may not be cost-effective for radar coverage. Ethiopia, Reunion and Morocco are also upbeat on the ADS-B system. Ms. Aissatou Sy of ASECNA says whereas there is need to improve VHF (Very High Frequency) coverage in FIRs in Africa, it is important to create partnerships to review and possibly implement the ADS-B technology. It is expected that by 2015 all aircraft will be manufactured with ADS-B capability, while from 2017 all aircraft will be required to have ADS-B capability.

Multilateration has been implemented in the South Africa region by ATNS, which now wants its example with wide area multilateration to be emulated by other ANSPs to provide cost-efficiency in the AFI region.

Political Support /AFCAC's Involvement

The African Civil Aviation Commission (AFCAC) is expected to drive air transport development in Africa by ensuring the coordinated participation of States in the areas of policy formulation and harmonization, as well as funding. Although, Mr. Boubacar Djibo, Secretary General of AFCAC, says the meeting of Ministers in Abuja in 1991, as well as the meeting of African airlines with the African Development Bank (AfDB) and the African Union (AU) in Tunis in 2006, and the Meeting of AU Transport Ministers in Algiers in 2008, provided platforms to harness political support to new efforts in Africa's air transport development, what is required now is the practical demonstration of such government support to the AFI Single Sky programme, and other such aviation development programmes in Africa, with AFCAC playing a key role.

AFI ANSPs need a unified human resource development strategy based on the expected harmonization of their ATM resources; and there are calls for AFCAC to drive this process. Already, under ICAO's support, AFCAC and ACIP (AFI Plan Comprehensive Implementation Plan) and other regional partners are working out a harmonized framework for aviation training in the AFI region. There are opinions that AFCAC should coordinate AFI region's relations with other regions - including the political aspects of ATM improvement and harmonization.

Mr. Djibo, however, charges African ANSPs to streamline their activities in order to work with AFCAC to effectively address identified areas of need. But essentially, AFCAC's current capacity should be strengthened for AFCAC to effectively deliver on its lengthening list of mandates on the continent, which ranges from its role as Yamoussoukro Decision's Executing Agency, harmonization of AFI training framework, relations with RECs and regional groupings, to the relations with regions outside Africa.

Cotonou Declaration

The 3rd ANSPs meeting in Cotonou produced the Cotonou Declaration which, among others, highlights that ANSPs give highest priority to ICAO SARPs, eliminate deficiencies and prioritize cooperation on regulation. The Cotonou Declaration also emphasizes on the harmonization of regional training among AFI ANSPs, as it also stresses the need for a working group for ANSPs' training. The Declaration equally charges AFI ANSPs to enhance air navigation services with ANSPs, and agree on measures of performance.

Waiting For Better Results

The Single (African) Sky concept has been endorsed by ICAO as advantageous to air navigation as it enhances safety, efficiency, and cost-saving for ANSPs, airlines and the industry generally. Government support need be reassured and AFCAC needs to help rekindle the meeting (and required action) of AU transport Ministers, while ANSPs synchronize their systems and know-how. AFI ANSPs must be more visible to governments and the international community, as well as to themselves. And they must become more vibrant now as those in other regions. With the support of regional and international partners, AFI ANSPs can achieve the Single African Sky.

Now, what is key is to make the right preparations, learning from the mistakes of others and adapting global interoperability objectives to the local needs of the AFI region. In the run-up to 2012 and beyond, coordination, cooperation and harmonization can only be the best way for Africa.