Systemisation will become a defining feature of how aircraft navigate the skies, bringing greater predictability, improved efficiency and better use of the UK’s busy airspace.

Holds are a standard procedure for managing traffic flow into an airport and maintaining safe separation between aircraft. These racetrack-shaped flight patterns allow aircraft to be held at different altitudes while the pilot awaits further instructions from air traffic control (ATC).

It’s estimated that at least half of aviation’s warming effect comes from non-CO₂ impacts, with contrails among the most significant contributors. What are the quick wins and what still needs to happen?

As aviation demands grow, parts of the UK’s airspace are operating beyond what they were designed to accommodate. With some airspace routes dating back to the 1950s, airspace modernisation is increasingly important. The UK Airspace Design Service (UKADS) has been established to help deliver that change.

It can take many years to get an airspace change to deployment, but what happens when that day finally arrives? You may think that implementing an airspace change would involve a major interruption to the operation. In reality, everything the team does in the run-up to deployment is to ensure the network can continue to function as normal when a change happens.

The launch of Sustainable Aviation’s 2026 Decarbonisation Road-map was an important reminder that aviation’s journey to net zero won’t be delivered by a single breakthrough – it will require many solutions working together.

Every Farnborough International Airshow offers a window into the future of aviation. This year, however, something felt different.

Farnborough International Airshow is a challenge unlike any other – and one we start preparing for almost as soon as the previous Airshow ends. But what does it take to manage?

Net Zero Week is an opportunity to highlight the many ways the aviation industry is working towards net zero emissions by 2050. While much of the conversation focuses on sustainable aviation fuels and the next generation of aircraft, one of the most effective ways to reduce emissions is already happening today – by making better use of the skies above us.

The airspace network works a bit like a busy road system, but in three dimensions. When severe weather rolls in, aircraft must be safely managed around it. That pushes more traffic into other parts of the network, creates bottlenecks and reduces the number of aircraft that can safely pass through at once.