Europe fine tunes 8.33kHz above FL195

This means that all European States are now aligned with European Commission Regulation 1265/2007 on this issue. The fact that these five countries have enforced carriage of 8.33kHz equipment above FL195 brings to an end a fragmented situation where most States enforced above FL195, whilst a few enforced above FL245, explained Peter Alty, the EUROCONTROL Agency 8.33 kHz Programme Manager. The next important goal is to ensure that ground equipment is converted to 8.33kHz by the deadline of July 2008. The work that has been done on converting to 8.33kHz above FL195 will alleviate the current difficulties in obtaining VHF assignments in the aeronautical communications VHF band from 118-137 MHz. European States are concerned, however, that in line with increasing air traffic levels, the demand for VHF assignments will continue to grow. In response, EUROCONTROL is working on 8.33 kHz below FL195, as well as other measures to address frequency congestion. A revised business case, implementation plan and safety assessment for 8.33 kHz below FL195 are being prepared, confirmed Guido Kerkhofs, Director ATM Programmes. This work will take into account the results of a study into frequency usage, which is a key issue for General Aviation and military stakeholders. EUROCONTROL plans a stakeholder consultation on implementing 8.33kHz below FL195 from June 2008, with a view to seeking conclusions from key consultative bodies by the end of the year.