Modernising our airspace is a priority for this government, and the upgrades that have been made to date are already providing improved reliability to services and helping to deliver our climate and environmental obligations. The benefits of modernisation don’t stop at conventional passenger aircraft – it will also enable the safe integration of emerging aviation technologies, futureproofing our skies for the next generation of aircraft and making meaningful contributions towards our net zero targets.
Modernisation has an important role in ensuring that the growth of UK aviation proceeds in a sustainable manner, minimising where possible noise impacts for communities and emissions through more efficient flight paths.
As the programme enters its third year following the refresh of the Airspace Modernisation Strategy (AMS), there continues to be considerable progress. Some of the most significant developments include
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The establishment of the UK Airspace Design Service (UKADS), which will deliver holistic and modernised airspace design for the complex London Terminal Airspace by taking forward airports’ airspace change proposals (ACPs) in a coordinated manner.
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The creation of a new UK Airspace Support Fund to cover relevant costs of the sponsors of eligible ACPs that are outside the scope of the UKADS.
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Progress being made by the 18 airports advancing their ACPs as part of the Terminal Airspace Redesign element, with Edinburgh and Glasgow Airports conducting their consultations.
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Work progressing well on enabling the full integration of UK airspace, including supporting the safe integration of new airspace users, like drones. The CAA consulted on beyond visual line of sight operations (BVLOS) for unmanned aircraft systems and work has begun mandating the carriage of electronic conspicuity technology.
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The funding of 6 new projects to support the development of integration and beyond visual line of sight (BVLOS) operations.
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The publication in August 2025 of the updated part 3 of the strategy, consisting of the deployment plan outlining the delivery milestones for projects in progress or due to commence over the next 7 years.
The Airspace Modernisation Annual Progress Report, prepared by the CAA, is required by the Secretary of State for Transport and provides details of the progress made within the programme, as well as the policy development work carried out by the CAA against each of the AMS’s elements. This report covers the period from January to December 2025.
It provides a clear overview of the progress that has been delivered across the 9 delivery elements and the multiple projects within each one. It also illustrates areas of delay or concern and what mitigations and measures are in place to reduce them. The full report is available on the CAA website.
Since 2022, the Department for Transport has placed the annual progress report in both libraries as a record of the workstreams initiated and work carried out. However, as the programme has matured and gained momentum, many aspects have become business as usual activities.
This written ministerial statement (WMS) therefore represents the final time the CAA’s annual progress report will be placed in both libraries. The CAA will continue to produce the report and publish it on their website with appropriate publicity.
