Brussels, 26/11/2003 (Agence Europe) - The first meeting of the conciliation committee on European single sky is to be held on 9 December. It will be an important meeting given the lack of progress made so far in reconciling the positions adopted by the European Parliament and Council, all the more as the date of the meeting coincides with the last day foreseen for concluding conciliation. According to a source familiar with the issue, and despite this deadline, an agreement will not be reached as long as the two institutions stick to their respective stances concerning: cooperation between civilian and military users of airspace and the organisation of airspace zones. In a final attempt to reach an agreement during the meeting, a trilogue may be held on 2 December.
During its vote in second reading on the single sky "package", the Parliament had requested that cooperation between civilian and military users of European sky should be within the context of the "single sky committee" and that the definition of airspace zones should be made by Eurocontrol (EUROPE of 4 July). This is an unacceptable position for the Council, for whom these two issues must remain under the sovereignty of Member States. In its common position, the Transport Council of December 2002 decided that the airspace zones should be defined by bilateral agreements concluded between Member States in order to allow the latter to keep a central role in this respect. The Council also settled the question of relations between civilian and military users of European sky in the context of a declaration attached to its common position (EUROPE of 6 December, 2002).