Although the outbreak of the Global Health crisis has slowed down or halted projects in all sectors, the process of signing EGNOS Working Agreements (EWAs) in many European airports has continued as planned. In the last five months, 4 new European organizations have settled EGNOS Working Agreements as a first step towards implementing EGNOS-based operations in the near future.
Sindal Airport in Denmark, the Czech Air Force, Slovenia Control and European Air Cargo in Sweden as Air Navigation Service Providers finally confirmed the availability of the EGNOS service in 2020.
The demand for EGNOS-based procedures across European airports is growing rapidly, with twenty new organizations signing EGNOS Working Agreements with ESSP SAS in 2019.
The EGNOS service has also been successfully extended into non-ATS environments and in particular in Helicopter Emergency Medical Services (HEMS) operations. The first EWA signed with HEMS providers was established in summer 2019 with Norsk Luftambulanse, a HEMS rotorcraft operator which operates flights in Scandinavia.
Over 2019 and 2020, 27 Air Navigation Service Providers (ANSPs) signed an EGNOS Working Agreement bringing their total number to 95 across Europe:
ORO Navigacija (LT), Arendal Airport-Gullknapp (Norway), High Coast Airport (Sweden), ATS Hagfors (Sweden), SAERCO (Spain), Torsby Airport (Sweden), ESKM ATS (Sweden), Lycksele Airport (Sweden), Seinäjoki Airport (Finland), Ireland West Airport (Ireland), ANA Luxembourg (Luxembourg), Tréner Kft (Hungary), LGS (Latvia), Norsk Luftambulanse (Norway), SafeSkys (United Kingdom), Avinor AS (Norway), Györ-Per Airport (Hungary), Békés Airport (Hungary), Newcastle Airport (United Kingdom), Glasgow Prestwick Airport (United Kingdom), Trentino Trasporti (Italy), ANSP LHPP (Hungary), South Lapland Airport (Sweden), Sindal Airport (Denmark), Czech Air Force (Czech Republic), Slovenia Control (Slovenia) and European Air Cargo (Sweden).
Sweden had the highest growth in terms of implementation of EGNOS closely followed by Hungary.
The so-called PBN IR1 will further stimulate the implementation of EGNOS based procedures in most of the remaining airports because this Regulation makes it mandatory for the Air Navigation Service Providers to publish RNP approaches at all the runway ends without precision approaches before the end of 2020 and at all the rest of runway ends (already with a precision approach) by the beginning of 2024. ESSP will continue providing support to ensure that EGNOS is well served where needed.
1 Commission Implementing Regulation (EU) 2018/1048 of 18 July 2018 laying down airspace usage requirements and operating procedures concerning performance-based navigation. https://eur-lex.europa.eu/legal-content/EN/TXT/?uri=uriserv:OJ.L_.2018.189.01.0003.01.ENG&toc=OJ:L:2018:189:TOC