The International Civil Aviation Organisation (Icao) has urged member states to become more open to sharing flight data.
Icao secretary general, Fang Liu, said that this would support new Air Traffic Flow Management (ATFM) approaches and help to safely and efficiently manage forecast growth.
“For some states this will involve sovereignty concerns, as all partners involved in an ATFM framework must be willing to fully commit to and support a more open and collaborative international flight information environment,” said Liu.
“In many mature air transport markets we no longer have the luxury of simply adding new airports and slots to accommodate further traffic growth.”
Singapore Civil Aviation Authority director-general, Kevin Shum, highlighted that this would also optimise social and economic benefits of increased international routes and flights as the industry depended on openness and continued participation in the sharing of ideas, knowledge and experience.
Liu pointed out that the speed and efficiency at which modern commercial aircraft could move passengers and cargo was threatened by the pace at which air transport operations were expanding.
According to an Icao statement, ATFM optimises the existing capacities of air traffic management systems through a more precise coordination of take-offs and landings and through the “dynamic” routing of flights around constrained airspaces.
