Regulation 391/2013 Common Charging Scheme for Air Navigation Services
Regulation 391/2013 Common Charging Scheme for Air Navigation Services
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Note: This Regulation was repealed by Regulation 2019/317 and is no longer in force.
Commission Implementing Regulation (EU) No 391/2013 of 3 May 2013 laying down a common charging scheme for air navigation services - text published in the Official Journal of the European Union
Objective
To develop of a common charging scheme for air navigation services provided during all phases of flight, to increase transparency with regard to the determination, imposition and enforcement of charges applicable to airspace users and to contribute to the safe, cost-efficient and effective provision of air navigation services to the users that finance the system and stimulate integrated service provision.
Summary
Scope
This Regulation lays down the measures for the development of a common charging scheme for air navigation services.
This Regulation shall apply to air navigation services provided by air traffic service providers and by providers of meteorological services within the International Civil Aviation Organisation (ICAO) EUR and AFI regions where Member States are responsible for the provision of air navigation services. It shall also apply to the Network Manager.
Member States may decide not to apply this Regulation to air navigation services provided at airports with fewer than 70 000 Instrument Flight Rules (IFR) air transport movements per year. Where none of the airports reaches this threshold, the Regulation shall apply as a minimum to the airport with the highest number of IFR air transport movements.
Principles of the Common Charging Scheme
The common charging scheme shall be subject to the principles established in Regulation (EC) No 550/2004. The common charging scheme shall provide for transparency and consultation with airspace users’ representatives on the cost bases and on the allocation of costs among different services.
En route air navigation services shall be financed by en route charges imposed on users of air navigation services and/or other revenues.
Terminal air navigation services shall be financed by terminal charges imposed on users of air navigation services and/or other revenues.
Revenues derived through en route or terminal charges shall not be used to finance commercial activities of air navigation service providers.
Exemption from Charges
Member States shall exempt from en route charges (and may exempt from terminal charges):
- flights performed by aircraft with a maximum authorised take-off weight which is less than two metric tons;
- mixed VFR/IFR flights in the charging zones where they are performed exclusively under VFR and where a charge is not levied for VFR flights;
- flights transporting reigning Monarchs and their immediate family, Heads of State, heads of Government and Government Ministers;
- search and rescue flights.
Member States may exempt from en route and terminal charges:
- military flights;
- training flights;
- flights for checking or testing ground aids to air navigation;
- flights terminating at the airport from which the aircraft has taken off and during which no intermediate landing has been made;
- VFR flights;
- humanitarian flights;
- customs and police flights.
Calculation of Charges
The en route charge for a flight shall be equal to the product of the unit rate and the en route service units for that flight. The en route service unit shall be calculated as the product of the distance factor (based on the distance between the entry and the exit point) and the weight factor (based on the maximum certified take-off weight) for the aircraft concerned.
The terminal charge for a flight shall be equal to the product of the unit rate and the terminal service units for that flight. The terminal service unit shall be equal to the weight factor for the aircraft concerned. For charging purposes, approach and departure shall count as a single flight. The unit to be counted shall be either the arriving or the departing flight.
The en route unit rate and the terminal unit rate shall be calculated before the beginning of each year of the reference period.
Costs of Air Navigation Service Provision
The determined costs and actual costs shall include the costs relating to eligible services, facilities and activities.
The costs shall be broken down into:
- staff costs - these shall include gross remuneration, overtime payments, and employers’ contributions to social security schemes as well as pension costs and other benefits.
- other operating costs - these shall include costs incurred for the purchase of goods and services used to provide air navigation services, in particular outsourced services, external staff, material, energy, utilities, rental of buildings, equipment and facilities, maintenance, insurance costs and travel expenses.
- depreciation costs - these shall relate to the total fixed assets in operation for air navigation service purposes.
- cost of capital - this shall be equal to the product of:
- the sum of the average net book value of fixed assets and of the average value of the net current assets, that are required for the provision of air navigation services;
- the weighted average of the interest rate on debts and of the return on equity.
- exceptional items - these shall consist of non-recurring costs relating to the provision of air navigation services during the same year.
Traffic Risk Sharing
A traffic risk-sharing mechanism is established by the regulation to mitigate the effect of large differences between the actual service units and the forecast established in the performance plan. The following sceratios are covered:
- the actual number of service units does not exceed or fall below the forecast by more than 2 % - the additional or lost revenue in respect of determined costs shall not be carried over.
- the actual number of service units exceeds the forecast by more than 2 % - a minimum of 70 % of the additional revenue shall result in a corresponding reduction of the determined costs.
- the actual number of service units falls below the forecast by more than 2 % - a maximum of 70 % of the revenue loss shall result in a corresponding increase of the determined costs.
- the actual number of service units is lower than 90 % of the forecast - the full amount of the revenue loss in excess of 10 % of the difference between the actual service units and the forecast shall result in a corresponding increase of the determined costs.
- the actual number of service units exceed 110 % of the forecast - the full amount of the additional revenue in excess of 10 % of the difference between the actual service units and the forecast shall result in a corresponding reduction of the determined costs.
Incentive Schemes for Air Navigation Service Providers
Member States shall adopt financial incentives for their air navigation service providers. These incentives shall consist in bonuses for exceeding and penalties for under-achieving target levels of performance and are to be added to or deducted from the adopted determined costs according to the level of performance achieved.
The applicable level of bonuses and penalties shall be commensurate with the targets to be reached and the performance achieved. There shall be no bonuses for performance that is at or below that expected in performance targets.
The applicable level of bonuses and penalties shall be equal.
The maximum amount of bonuses / penalties shall not exceed 1 % of the revenue from air navigation services.
Collection of Charges
Member States may collect charges through a single charge per flight.
Users of air navigation services shall promptly and fully pay all air navigation charges.
Member States shall ensure that effective enforcement measures are applied.
Entry Into Force
This Regulation entered into force in May 2013 and applies from the second reference period as defined in Implementing Regulation (EU) No 390/2013 and during that period.
It repeals Commission Regulation (EC) No 1794/2006 laying down a common charging scheme for air navigation services with effect from 1 January 2015.
Note: This Regulation was repealed by Regulation 2019/317 and is no longer in force.
Regulation 391/2013 - Common Charging Scheme for Air Navigation Services (OJ, 9.5.2013)
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