The Airspace Change Organising Group (ACOG) is responsible for coordinating a significant part of the delivery of the UK Government’s Airspace Modernisation Strategy. To do this, they are developing the Airspace Change Masterplan in collaboration with 22 airports up and down the UK, including three here in Scotland – Edinburgh, Glasgow and Aberdeen. The outcome of this will be, quicker, quieter and cleaner flights.

When most people think of the critical infrastructure that supports businesses in Edinburgh and across Britain, airspace is rarely the first thing to come to mind. However, aviation supports over 1 million jobs across the UK and between October 2018 and October 2019, prior to the pandemic, there were over £345 billion worth of imports into the UK and over £490 billion worth of exports from the UK through our airspace. It is critical to connecting us with the rest of the world, a gateway through which thousands of people visit the UK. Edinburgh Airport welcomes 14.7 million passengers every year from 158 different destinations, supporting the cities role as one of the most popular cities in the world.

With this in mind, people may be surprised that Britain’s airspace hasn’t been significantly updated since the 1950s. This means Britain, a global leader in aviation, risks falling behind other countries who are already modernising their airspace. A recent study revealed failure to modernise the UK’s airspace could result in 28 million minutes of delay by 2030, costing the UK economy £1.8 billion through longer journey times.

It is ACOG’s job to make sure that doesn’t happen. An important part of that role is engaging with businesses to prepare them for the changes that they could witness as the airspace change programme develops. ACOG’s roundtable in Edinburgh is part of a series of events being hosted by ACOG and gave us the opportunity to meet with local business owners and decision makers, including Daniel Johnson MSP, to discuss the potential benefits airspace modernisation holds for the city.

We heard from a diverse range of voices from both within and outside the aviation sector and it was great to be able to discuss how airspace modernisation could benefit so many different industries. For example representatives from the events industry pointed out that Edinburgh’s impressive annual calendar of events was the equivalent to hosting a World Cup every year. Many of the visitors to these events come through Scotland’s airspace and the effect of making it more efficient could have significant environmental and economic benefits.

It was great to see the interest in and support for airspace modernisation, while also being able to answer questions about the technicalities of the programme and ACOG’s role within it. What is really exciting for members of Edinburgh’s Chamber of Commerce is that the Scottish airports are on track to be the first groups of airports in the UK to deliver airspace modernisation.

Airspace modernisation holds the potential to make Scotland more connected with the rest of the world and a more sustainable place to hold events, study and do business. It can help Edinburgh do what it does best, even better.

Author: Mark Swan, Head of ACOG