SESAR JU acts to support its aviation partners during the COVID crisis

The SESAR Joint Undertaking, with the support of the European Commission, is putting in place a basket of measures to assist its members, many of whom are facing unprecedented economic challenges due to the coronavirus pandemic. The measures, which were announced at the recently held SESAR JU Administrative Board meeting, aim to help industry in the short term, while also maintaining momentum in the research partnership’s activities.

The measures include showing flexibility towards projects, many of which involve airlines and other operational stakeholders whose operations are severely curtailed at present. Deadlines have been extended for recently published open calls to allow additional preparation time for the ATM stakeholders to prepare their proposals.

In addition, the SESAR JU proposes to inject additional budget into the programme and increase pre-financing support to members and beneficiaries. At the same time, it will limit members’ financial contributions for a period of time, facilitated by cutting the running costs of the SESAR JU to a strict minimum.