European Organisation for the Safety of Air Navigation

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EUROCONTROL is the European Organisation for the Safety of Air Navigation, an international organisation whose primary objective is the development of a seamless, pan-European Air Traffic Management (ATM) system. This civil organisation currently has 37 member states; its headquarters are in Brussels.

EUROCONTROL develops, coordinates and plans for implementation of short-, medium- and long-term pan-European air traffic management strategies and their associated action plans in an effort involving national authorities, air navigation service providers, civil and military airspace users, airports, industry, professional organisations and relevant European institutions. Its core activities involve all gate-to-gate air navigation service operations: strategic and tactical flow management, controller training, regional control of airspace, development of leading-edge, safety-proofed technologies and procedures, and collection of air navigation charges.

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It provides various external services, including its EUROCONTROL Maastricht Upper Area Control Centre (MUAC), widely recognized as the world's most productive and efficient air traffic control center. The high productivity is due to its evolutionary technical infrastructure (MADAP), pan-European recruitment, human resources reward program and organisational culture. MUAC created innovative technology and productivity enhancements: the Short-Term Conflict Alert, Medium-Term Conflict Alert, Medium-Term Conflict Detection, Automated Flight Activation Messages (ACT), Controller-Pilot Datalink Connectivity (CPDLC) and stripless controller working positions. Using an innovative Operator Display System (ODS) sporting various productivity boosting innovations, the air traffic controllers working at the MUAC provide safe and efficient control services over various European countries such as Belgium, Luxembourg, The Netherlands and Germany.

Typically, Air Traffic Control Sectors at MUAC can handle 50 or more flights per hour in an Upper Control Area above 24500 feet. The average flight duration is approximately 18 minutes and typically 60% of the traffic is climbing from or descending to the major European airports of London, Paris, Frankfurt, Amsterdam and Berlin.