ICAO 9993 PDF

EXECUTIVE SUMMARY

Continuous climb operations (CCO) is an aircraft operating technique enabled by airspace design, instrument procedure design and facilitation by ATC, allowing for the execution of a flight profile optimized to the performance of the aircraft. CCO enables the aircraft to attain initial cruise flight level at optimum airspeed and engine thrust settings set throughout the climb, thereby reducing total fuel burn and emissions. Ideally, the departure design is such that arriving traffic is also able to descend based on an optimum descent profile. Where the departure and arrival flows cannot be designed independently, there will need to be a compromise between the needs of the departure and arrival flow optimization; this compromise should be reached collaboratively.

This manual contains guidance material on the airspace design, instrument flight procedures, ATC facilitation and flight techniques necessary to enable CCO. It therefore provides background and implementation guidance for:

a) air navigation service providers, including both terminal and en-route facilities;

b) aircraft operators/pilots;

c) airport operators; and

d) aviation regulators.

The key objectives of this manual are to improve the:

a) overall management of traffic and airspace in order to enable efficient climb profiles, minimizing interference between departing and arriving traffic;

b) understanding of requirements for continuous climb profiles; and

c) understanding and harmonization of associated terminology.

CCO is one of several tools available to aircraft operators and ANSPs that, through collaboration between stakeholders, will make it possible to increase efficiency, flight predictability and airspace capacity, while reducing fuel burn, emissions and controller-pilot communications, thereby maintaining safety. Over the years, different airspace models have been developed to facilitate efficient terminal operations, and several methods have been adopted to optimize the terminal airspace design to provide a balanced approach towards achieving profiles close to the ideal fuelefficient and environmentally friendly procedures, while maximizing the capacity of an airport and its surrounding airspace.

Starting with the design of the standard instrument departure (SID), an optimum continuous climb can be undertaken from take-off to cruise, including the noise abatement departure procedure, reducing both controller-pilot communications and segments of level flight. Such a profile should also provide a reduction in noise, fuel burn and emissions, while increasing flight stability and the predictability of the flight path to both controllers and flight crews.

Standard instrument departure/standard instrument arrival (SID/STAR) procedures should be designed in concert with one another to achieve balanced flight path profiles thereby ensuring that the profiles meet the needs of both the ATC and operators to the greatest extent possible. The procedures need to be presented in an unambiguous manner, ensuring the ATC and flight crews have a common understanding of requirements and the resulting flight profiles. To achieve this, the instrument procedure designer needs to understand the flight characteristics, limitations and capabilities of the range of aircraft expected to perform CCO at the subject airport, as well as the characteristics of the airspace and routes where CCO will be used. For airport operators and environmental entities, it is important to understand the extent and limitations of environmental benefits, aircraft performance and airspace when proposing CCO.

The climb is the phase of operations that uses the highest rate of fuel during a flight. Considering the growing concerns about the environment and particularly climate change and taking into account the high cost of fuel, collaborating to facilitate CCO is essential for all operational stakeholders.

It is of paramount importance that safety be maintained during all phases of flight — nothing in this guidance shall take precedence over the requirement for the safe operation and control of aircraft at all times. To avoid doubt, all recommendations are to be read as being "subject to the requirements of safety".

Before any CCO-based procedure trials or operations commence, the proposed implementation needs to be the subject of a local safety assessment.