Annual Monitoring Report 2023 - Belgium
Contextual information
National performance plan adopted following Commission Decision (EU) 2024/350 of 13 December 2023
List of ACCs 1
Brussels ACC
No of airports in the scope of the performance plan
≥80’K 1
<80’K 0
Exchange rate (1 EUR=)
2017: 1 EUR
2023: 1 EUR
Share of Union-wide traffic (TSUs) 2023 2.0%
Share of Union-wide en route costs 2023 3.5%
Share en route / terminal costs 2023 87% / 13%
En route charging zone(s)
Belgium-Luxembourg
Terminal charging zone(s)
Belgium
Main ANSP
• skeyes
Other ANSPs
• MUAC
MET Providers
–
Traffic (En route traffic zone)
▪ The en route charging zone of Belgium-Luxembourg recorded 1,158K actual IFR movements in 2023, +13% compared to 2022 (1,023K).
▪ Actual 2023 IFR movements were -1.3% below the plan (1,173K).
▪ Actual 2023 IFR movements represent 93% of the actual 2019 level (1,249K).
▪ The en route charging zone of Belgium-Luxembourg recorded 2,447K actual en route service units in 2023, +17% compared to 2022 (2,096K).
▪ Actual 2023 service units were +2% above the plan (2,404K).
▪ Actual 2023 service units represent 93% of the actual 2019 level (2,620K).
Safety (Main ANSP)
▪ In 2023, skeyes did not achieve its planned maturity level for risk management but it improved for safety culture reaching the RP3 target. skeyes made no progress in the safety risk management component and is behind its planned maturity level for this management objective. The ANSP established corrective measures to ensure the RP3 target level is met by 2024.
▪ The NSA cautions that the skeyes might not be able to achieve the RP3 targets unless compliance with (prescriptive) EoSM guidance material is fully demonstrated.
▪ The overall safety performance of skeyes was stable, the runway incursion rate was higher than in 2022 but remained below the Union-wide average.
▪ Skeyes does not use automated safety data recording systems.
Environment (Member State)
▪ Belgium achieved a KEA performance of 3.59% compared to its target of 3.00% and did not contribute positively to the Union-wide target.
▪ The NSA states that given the limited size of the Belgium-Luxembourg airspace, the possibility of improving performance is limited.
▪ Both KEP and SCR improved in comparison with 2022’s performance. Despite the KEA target being missed, the improvement in SCR shows that Belgium has improved the environmental efficiency of its airspace when accounting for impacts outside of its control.
▪ The share of CDO flights marginally decreased from 16.91% to 16.20% in 2023.
▪ During 2023, additional time in terminal airspace increased from 0.57 to 0.75 min/flight, while additional taxi out time increased from 1.53 to 2.14 min/flight.
Capacity (Member State)
▪ The average number of IFR movements was 13% below 2019 levels in Belgium-Luxembourg in 2023.
▪ Belgium-Luxembourg registered 0.18 minutes of average en route ATFM delay per flight during 2023, thus not achieving the local target value of 0.17. Delays in Belgium-Luxembourg decreased by 0.09 minutes per flight year-on-year.
▪ Delays were highest in May and between July and October, mostly driven by ATC staffing and adverse weather.
▪ The share of delayed flights with delays longer than 15 minutes in Belgium-Luxembourg decreased by 3 p.p. compared to 2022 and was lower than 2019 values.
▪ The number of ATCOs in OPS is expected to increase by 12% by 2024, with the actual value being below the 2023 plan in Brussels by 6 FTEs.
▪ The yearly total of sector opening hours in Brussels ACC was 28,519, showing a 0.4% increase compared to 2022. Sector opening hours are 2.1% below 2019 levels.
▪ Brussels ACC registered 19.46 IFR movements per one sector opening hour in 2023, being 10.7% below 2019 levels.
Cost-efficiency (En route/Terminal charging zone(s))
▪ The en route 2023 actual unit cost of Belgium-Luxembourg was 88.09 €2017, -2.5% lower than the determined unit cost (90.34 €2017). The terminal actual unit cost of Belgium was 234.71 €2017, -2.1% lower than the determined unit cost (239.73 €2017). The terminal actual unit cost of Luxembourg was 263.82 €2017, +14% higher than the determined unit cost (231.72 €2017).
▪ The en route 2023 actual service units (2.45M) were +1.8% higher than the determined service units (2.40M).
▪ The en route 2023 actual total costs were -1.7 M€2017 (-0.8%) lower compared to determined. The gap was mainly attributable to lower other operating costs (-4.6 M€2017, or -10%). The NSA explained that the lower other operating costs resulted from utility expenses decreasing more rapidly than anticipated in 2023, following a steep increase in the previous year.
▪ skeyes spent 12 M€2017 in 2023 related to costs of investments for en route charging zone, which was more than determined (+0.4 M€2017, or +3.4%). According to the NSA, this overspend is due to the “decommissioning of equipment (ISAAC SR4, old WAN)” which was not foreseen in the performance plan, resulting in an overspent of depreciation costs (+0.4 M€2017, or +4.8%).
▪ The en route actual unit cost incurred by users of Belgium-Luxembourg in 2023 was 106.60€ (-2.2% below the 2023 DUC), while the terminal actual unit cost incurred by users was 214.99€ (-26% below the 2023 DUC) for Belgium and 236.97€ (-12% below the 2023 DUC) for Luxembourg. The difference between the AUCU and the DUC for the Belgium EBBR charging zone is strongly affected by the adjustment of other revenues (-11 M€).