400 thousand flights benefited from the “Free Air Dial” project in the Emirates within a year

The General Authority of Civil Aviation stated that more than 400,000 flights benefited from the “Free Air Force” project in the Emirates, in just one year, which resulted in tangible operational and environmental results.

The third report of the series of reports launched by the authority, entitled “Vision from the Interior: Civil Aviation in the UAE”, through which it reviews the most prominent features of progress, challenges and future opportunities, to the “FRA” project, which was launched in the middle of 2023, and aims to enhance efficiency, sustainability and regional coordination.

This project allows the aircraft to choose their favorite paths instead of adhering to the fixed air passages, which enhances the efficiency of operation, and reduces the time of flights, fuel consumption and carbon emissions.

According to the authority, the project was designed in close coordination with air navigation providers in neighboring countries, airspace users, regional and international bodies, to ensure smooth integration with the surrounding flight information areas and support the compatible operation at the regional level.

The authority pointed out that despite the limited application of the project at the levels of certain airlines «FL360 and above», more than 400 thousand trips have benefited from the “Free Mind Domain” project in only one year, which resulted in concrete operating and environmental results that included: providing more than 235 thousand nautical miles in the total distance of flights, and providing more than 11 thousand kilograms of fuel in all trips that use the “FRA” system, and reduce what It is approximately 35 thousand kilograms of carbon dioxide emissions. Only the first month, 34%of the total flights have used the levels of “free airspace”, and within two months this number increased significantly to more than 58-60%, and since then it has settled at about 52-55%, indicating the continued dependence and confidence in the free airspace operations, by the airspace users.