Requirements for providers of air traffic management and air navigation services

SUMMARY OF:

Implementing Regulation (EU) 2017/373 – common requirements for providers of air traffic management / air navigation services and other air traffic management network functions and their oversight

WHAT IS THE AIM OF THE REGULATION?

Implementing Regulation (EU) 2017/373 sets out common rules for:

providers of air traffic management and air navigation services (ATM/ANS) for general air traffic;
national authorities involved in certification, oversight and enforcement, and bodies acting on their behalf;
the design of airspace structures*.

KEY POINTS

ATM/ANS provision and airspace structure design

European Union (EU) Member States must ensure that ATM/ANS and airspace structure design comply with this regulation, to facilitate general air traffic while taking into account safety considerations, traffic requirements and environmental impact.

Detailed rules can be found in the annexes to the regulation.

If they adopt any additional rules to complement this regulation, on any matters left to the Member States under the regulation, Member States must:

follow the standards and recommendations of the Convention on International Civil Aviation of 7 December 1944;
notify the European Aviation Safety Agency within 2 months of adopting the additional rules;
publish such rules through their national aeronautical information publications; and
if they decide to organise the provision of certain specific air traffic services in a competitive environment, ensure that providers of those services do not engage in anti-competitive conduct or abuse a dominant market position.

Concerning the design of airspace structures, Member States must also ensure that:

any entity responsible for originating aeronautical data and aeronautical information used as a source for aeronautical information products and services meets the requirements set out in Annex III;
such data and information are originated, processed and transmitted by trained, competent and authorised personnel;
activities and services of ATM/ANS providers, along with the exchange of relevant data and information, are coordinated;
persons or organisations responsible for the design of airspace structures apply the requirements of Annex XI;
maintenance and periodic reviews of flight procedures are carried out for aerodromes and airspace under their authority;
the use of a ground-based transmitter operated in their territory does not produce harmful interference on other surveillance systems.

Member States must also:

determine the need for air traffic services, taking into account the types and density of air traffic, weather conditions and other factors defined in Annex IV;
ensure coordination between military units and air traffic service providers;
coordinate air operations potentially hazardous to civil aviation over their territory;
ensure that the aircraft emergency frequency (121.5 MHz) is used only for genuine emergencies as specified in Annex IV;
designate national authorities for certification, oversight and enforcement, with detailed powers set out in the regulation;
ensure the rules for the allocation of Mode Select (Mode S) codes* set out in the regulation are observed by all Mode S interrogators* and Mode S operators*;
ensure that a secondary surveillance radar transponder on board any aircraft flying over a Member State is not subject to excessive interrogations that are transmitted by ground-based surveillance interrogators and that either elicit replies or, whilst not eliciting a reply, are of sufficient power to exceed the minimum threshold level of the receiver of the secondary surveillance radar transponder;
ensure, with some exceptions, that all voice frequency assignments are converted to an 8.33 kHz channel spacing.

Annexes

The annexes list detailed requirements for providers of ATS/ANS and their competent authorities as follows.

Annex I: Definitions of terms used in Annexes II to XIII.
Annex II: Requirements for competent authorities – oversight of services and other ATM network functions.
Annex III: Common requirements for service providers.
Annex IV: Air traffic services.
Annex V: Meteorological services.
Annex VI: Aeronautical information services.
Annex VII: Data services.
Annex VIII: Communication, navigation or surveillance services.
Annex IX: Air traffic flow management.
Annex X: Airspace management.
Annex XI: Flight procedure design services.
Annex XII: Specific requirements for the network manager.
Annex XIII: Requirements for service providers concerning personnel training and competence assessment.

NB: The original annexes to Implementing Regulation (EU) 2017/373 have been amended several times, most recently by Implementing Regulation (EU) 2024/403, which entered into force on 1 May 2024 and applies from 1 May 2025.

Implementing Regulation (EU) 2017/373 is an implementing act which repeals Regulation (EC) No 482/2008, Implementing Regulations (EU) Nos 1034/2011 and 1035/2011 and (EU) 2016/1377, and Regulation (EU) No 677/2011.

FROM WHEN DOES THE REGULATION APPLY?

Implementing Regulation (EU) 2017/373 has applied since 2 January 2020.

BACKGROUND

Regulation (EC) No 551/2004 (see summary) concerns the EU rules on airspace.
Regulation (EC) No 550/2004 (see summary) concerns the single European sky – EU rules on air navigation services.
Regulation (EC) No 549/2004 (see summary) introduced a framework for creating the single European sky.
Regulation (EU) 2018/1139 (see summary) established the European Aviation Safety Agency. This regulation repealed and replaced Regulation (EC) No 216/2008.

For further information, see:

Single European sky (European Commission).

KEY TERMS

Airspace structures. A specific volume of airspace (the portion of the atmosphere controlled by the countries above their territories) designed to ensure the safe and optimal operation of aircraft.

Mode S codes. For air traffic control purposes, these are unique codes assigned to aircraft for surveillance and communication purposes. They allow interrogations to be directed to a particular aircraft and its replies to be authenticated.

Mode S interrogator. A system, composed of an antenna and electronics, which supports the addressing of individual aircraft through Mode S.

Mode S operator. A person, organisation or enterprise that operates or offers to operate a Mode S interrogator, such as surveillance service providers, Mode S interrogator manufacturers, aerodrome operators and research establishments.

MAIN DOCUMENT

Commission Implementing Regulation (EU) 2017/373 of 1 March 2017 laying down common requirements for providers of air traffic management/air navigation services and other air traffic management network functions and their oversight, repealing Regulation (EC) No 482/2008, Implementing Regulations (EU) No 1034/2011, (EU) No 1035/2011 and (EU) 2016/1377 and amending Regulation (EU) No 677/2011 (OJ L 62, 8.3.2017, pp. 1–126).

Successive amendments to Regulation (EU) 2017/373 have been incorporated into the original text. This consolidated version is of documentary value only.

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