First step in establishing FABEC

The meeting was held with a view to the FABEC States Agreement which is scheduled to be signed on 2 December 2010. The agreement will form the framework for jointly providing air navigation services in the airspace of Belgium, France, Germany, Luxembourg, the Netherlands and Switzerland. This step is an important milestone in the EU's Single European Sky programme aiming at increasing the efficiency of airspace management and enhancing safety and environmental benefits. FABEC brings together the six States of Belgium, France, Germany, Luxembourg, the Netherlands and Switzerland, their civil and military air navigation service providers as well as EUROCONTROL's four-State air traffic control centre in Maastricht. The civil FABEC ANSPs employ a total of 17,700 people. 5,400 are air traffic controllers. 55 % of all European traffic takes place in the FABEC area.