Western Hemisphere airlines to reduce fuel burn through RVSM

Western Hemisphere airlines to reduce fuel burn through RVSM    The International Civil Aviation Organization said the minimum vertical distance between planes flying in the airspace of North, Central, South America and the Caribbean has been reduced by half, resulting in more efficient flights and reduce fuel burn.
   Reduced Vertical Separation Minimum (RVSM) from 2,000 to 1,000 feet between 29,000 and 41,000 feet, effective Thursday, offers access to more efficient cruising levels when responding to changed operating conditions. “This leads to less fuel burn, with related savings for airlines and less pollution from engine emissions,” ICAO said.
   ICAO said the creation of six additional flight levels also increases the overall efficiency of airspace management, “leading to better on-time performance and fewer delays on the major air traffic routes between North and South America, through the Caribbean and Central America.”
   RVSM was established in 1997 in the airspace of the North Atlantic and applied thereafter over Europe, the Pacific, Asia, the Middle East, and in the Europe/South America corridor. “On the same basis of regional agreements, it will be expanded progressively to eventually cover all airspace around the world,” ICAO said.
   According to ICAO, the cost/benefit analysis in the North Pacific showed a 0.5 percent to 1 percent reduction in fuel cost for a savings of about $8 million per year for planes using this airspace. In Europe, airlines saved about 60 million euros ($78 million) a year.
   For the Caribbean and South and Central American regions, it’s expected that airlines will save about $400 million over a 15-year period for international flights alone, while in North America the fuel-savings benefit will be about $5.3 billion over the same period, ICAO said.
   ICAO credited the implementation of RVSM in the Western Hemisphere to three years of coordination and preparation involving 35 countries and 13 territories, under the leadership of Montreal-based organization’s regional offices in Lima and Mexico and in cooperation with stakeholders in the air transport industry.