FABEC participates in NASA contrail avoidance workshop

Functional Airspace Block Europe Central (FABEC) is participating in the Contrail Avoidance Workshop organised by the US National Aeronautics and Space Agency (NASA) taking place on 7 September 2022. Presenting the results of recent trials, Maastricht Upper Airspace Control (MUAC) will share its own operational experience of contrail prevention with panel members. MUAC worked with German research institute DLR over a period of several months during 2021, applying meteorological models to predict ice super-saturated regions that aircraft need to avoid in the North Atlantic, to test the operational feasibility of vertical contrail prevention.

MUAC Chief Operations Officer Niels Lokman said: “Sharing results of operational trials involving real flights with our colleagues in the US will help to advance research in the area of non-CO₂ aviation emissions. More research is needed to understand the role that air traffic control can play in contrail avoidance, how to balance the non-CO₂ and CO₂ impacts on climate change and working in common on this global issue will contribute to this process.”

NASA Langley Chief Technologist for Future Airspace Operations Andy Lacher said: “Recent research shows non-carbon emissions to be as significant a factor as carbon emissions in reducing aviation’s climate impact, potentially doubling the benefits available within the short term. Co-operating with FABEC enables us to pool research findings and identify ways to improve environmental performance globally.”

Register here: https://nari.arc.nasa.gov/ContrailAvoidanceWorkshop

Agenda available to download (draft) here