NICHOLAS IONIDES / SINGAPORE
A sweeping overhaul of the air route network between Asia and Europe was implemented on 28 November after more than two years of work.
The goal is to ease congestion and lead to fuel savings for airlines by reducing flying times. Gary Dennison, IATA Asia-Pacific assistant regional director for safety, operations and infrastructure, says congestion has now been "eliminated" for flights to Europe from key South-East Asian departure points Bangkok, Kuala Lumpur and Singapore, meaning "airlines can now take off when they want".
The Europe, Middle East, Asia Route Structure South of the Himalayas project has been more than two years in the making. IATA describes the changes as "the largest ever route overhaul in civil aviation...Passengers can expect flight times to be shortened by up to 30min, with an estimated 1,720h of ground delays eliminated for departures to Europe from Bangkok, Kuala Lumpur and Singapore," says the association. "For airlines, the benefits of more efficient routes in fuel savings alone will show cost reductions by a conservative estimate of $55 million a year," it adds.
IATA was tasked by member airlines after a meeting in Singapore in February 2000 to start the process of reforming the regularly congested "kangaroo routes" between Australia and Europe. ICAO was later approached to take over the project, and eventually over 20 states, airlines and military agencies became involved, along with air navigation chart-maker Jeppesen, says IATA.
David Behrens, IATA Asia-Pacific regional director for safety, operations and infrastructure, says that, in the past, flights departing from the three South-East Asian points suffered major delays every evening "as about 50 aircraft crammed onto the Bay of Bengal routes". He adds that 1h ground delays were common, and many aircraft electing to depart and fly at low altitudes, such as flight level 240 (24,000ft [7,320m]) or 260, were "stuck for 3-4 hours at these low altitudes".
Source: Flight International
