Powers and recitals

THE EUROPEAN COMMISSION,

Having regard to the Treaty on the Functioning of the European Union,

Having regard to Regulation (EU) 2018/1139 of the European Parliament and of the Council of 4 July 2018on common rules in the field of civil aviation and establishing a European Union Aviation Safety Agency, and amending Regulations (EC) No 2111/2005, (EC) No 1008/2008, (EU) No 996/2010, (EU) No 376/2014 and Directives 2014/30/EU and 2014/53/EU of the European Parliament and of the Council, and repealing Regulations (EC) No 552/2004 and (EC) No 216/2008 of the European Parliament and of the Council and Council Regulation (EEC) No 3922/91([14]), and in particular Articles 47(1) and 62(13),

Whereas:

(1)       Regulation (EU) 2018/1139 establishes common essential requirements to provide for a high uniform level of civil aviation safety in the Union and to ensure that the integrity and safety-related performance of systems and constituents are fit for their intended purpose. The interoperability of the air traffic management/air navigation service (ATM/ANS) systems and ATM/ANS constituents should ensure the seamless operation of the European air traffic management network (EATMN).

(2)       Detailed specifications should be established to ensure compliance with the essential requirements; those detailed specifications should whenever possible rely on recognised industry standards from Standards Developing Organisations (SDOs) that reflect the state of the art and best design practices. The design and production of ATM/ANS systems and ATM/ANS constituents should be carried out with consideration given to requirements to issue certification and declarations of design compliance and in line with detailed specifications issued by the European Union Aviation Safety Agency (‘the Agency’).

(3)       It is appropriate to establish different attestation methods for assessing conformity with the requirements set out in an Annex to this Regulation and detailed specifications of ATM/ANS systems and ATM/ANS constituents. More stringent attestation methods should be used as regards the safe operation of aircraft, and as regards equipment that is critical in terms of the interoperability and security of the EATMN.

(4)       Within the ATM/ANS, the air traffic control (ATC) services are the most important as regards the safety risks related to navigation of aircraft, in particular due to issuing instructions to ensure aircraft separation and collision avoidance. Providers of ATC have the most complete view regarding the safety of the airspace. Therefore, the most critical ATM/ANS equipment, namely the equipment supporting ATC should be subject to more stringent attestation methods, namely certification.

(5)       ATM/ANS equipment that supports air-to-ground communications delivers direct instructions to aircraft and should be subject to certification too.

(6)       The Communication, Surveillance, and Navigation services are used directly by the ATS to ensure safe navigation of aircraft, but the three services referred to do not have a complete view of traffic and do not play an active control over aircraft separation. Consequently, they play a less critical role. The ATM/ANS systems and ATM/ANS constituents that support them should be subject to a less stringent attestation method, namely declaration of design compliance.

(7)       Lastly, other less critical ATM/ANS systems and equipment that support meteorological services, aeronautical information services, airspace management services and air traffic flow management services should be subject to the least stringent attestation method, namely statement of compliance.

(8)       Additional criteria are possible to decide on criticality of ATM/ANS systems and ATM/ANS constituents in addition to the managerial control over safety risks of the services and functions that they support.

(9)       Therefore, three different levels of requirements and detailed specifications should be established, namely: (i) certification by the Agency, the most stringent level; (ii) declaration by an approved organisation involved in the design or production of ATM/ANS equipment, the medium level; and (iii) statement of compliance by the ATM/ANS provider that integrates the ATM/ANS equipment into its functional system, as defined in Commission Implementing Regulation (EU) 2017/373([15]), or, upon ATM/ANS provider’s request, by an approved organisation involved in the design or production of ATM/ANS equipment.

(10)     In accordance with Article 29(2), point (a), of Regulation (EU) 2021/696 of the European Parliament and of the Council([16]), the European Union Agency for the Space Programme (EUSPA) has been entrusted with managing the European Geostationary Navigation Overlay Service (EGNOS), including the exploitation of EGNOS that covers, amongst other actions, support to certification and standardisation efforts.

(11)     Under Regulation (EU) 2021/696 both EUSPA and the European Space Agency (ESA) are responsible for the design of the EGNOS system and its equipment. The Agency should oversee the declarations of design compliance of the equipment of EGNOS in accordance with specific arrangements to be concluded with EUSPA. Those arrangements are to address technical, administrative, and financial aspects such as a requirement to consult EUSPA as regards the development of detailed specifications; the oversight by EASA of the declarations of design compliance of the EGNOS system; and the exchange of data between both agencies regarding the relevant International Civil Aviation Organization (ICAO) Standards and Recommended Practices (SARPS) compliance. Those arrangements are to ensure a level of safety and interoperability equivalent to the requirements of this Regulation.

(12)     In certain remote territories, outside the ICAO European (EUR) region as defined in the European (EUR) Air Navigation Plan Volume I (Doc 7754) of ICAO, with low traffic volume and where that airspace borders only with airspace under the responsibility of third-country ATM/ANS providers, the application of the attestation methods of certification and declaration of design compliance of ATM/ANS equipment may be challenging or even unfeasible, due to their specific safety and interoperability needs. In such cases, for ATM/ANS equipment that is used by ATM/ANS providers in remote areas outside of the ICAO EUR region, it is deemed appropriate to provide derogations from the certification or declaration requirements applicable to such ATM/ANS equipment. Instead, in order to provide for safe and interoperable provision of ATM/ANS, the ATM/ANS provider in that region needs to ensure that applicable specifications are being met by issuing a statement of compliance.

(13)     It is necessary to ensure a smooth transition to the new regulatory framework established by this Regulation and to ensure that a high and uniform level of civil aviation safety in the Union is maintained. It is therefore necessary to provide sufficient time for the design and manufacturing industry of the ATM/ANS systems and ATM/ANS constituents, and for the Agency and Member States’ administrations to adapt to this new framework. It is appropriate that the ATM/ANS equipment that is in operation and that was attested under the previous framework is considered as if it had been issued with certificates or declarations issued under the new framework during a transition period, unless the Agency states that such equipment does not ensure the level of safety and interoperability required by Regulation (EU) 2018/1139.

(14)     During the transition period, as regards any new ATM/ANS system and ATM/ANS constituent put into operation, a statement of compliance, issued by the ATM/ANS provider that integrates it in its functional system, or, upon request, by the design and production organisation that designs and manufactures it, should be submitted to the competent authority of the referred ATM/ANS provider defined in Article 4(1) of Implementing Regulation (EU) 2017/373.

(15)     After the transition period the Agency should be solely responsible for certification and for receiving declarations concerning certain ATM/ANS equipment; it is therefore appropriate for the Agency to evaluate the compliance information submitted to national authorities under the previous framework, before such ATM/ANS equipment comes under the remit of the Agency. Therefore, national authorities should make this information available to the Agency. After the evaluation by the Agency, the ATM/ANS equipment should be deemed to have been issued with a certificate or declaration of compliance. The evaluation needs to be made public by decision of the Agency’s executive director.

(16)     The measures provided for in this Regulation are based on Opinion No 01/2023, issued by the European Union Aviation Safety Agency in accordance with Article 75(2), points (b) and (c), and Article 76(1) of Regulation (EU) 2018/1139,

HAS ADOPTED THIS REGULATION: