Overview
The MONITOR project consisted of developing a monitoring system that collects, processes and analyses relevant data from the global air transport system. Data collected included the dimensions economics, environment, demography and technology.
The major objective of MONITOR was to install a system for permanent monitoring of external and internal key factors of strategic importance for a wide variety of aviation stakeholders.
Collection, analysis and dissemination of relevant information form the basis. This is a necessary pre-condition for timely strategic decision making. At the same time, the monitoring should act as a reporting and early warning system and serve by annual workshops as a discussion platform for aviation stakeholders, regulators and scientists to discuss prevailing problems, challenges of aviation and requirements for further research activities.
In addition, MONITOR set out to generate valuable input for scenario modelling and quantification exercises such as ACARE Vision 2020+, EUROCONTROL Long Term Forecast and problem related scenarios (dealing especially with aviation constraints) and contribute to a better understanding of the dynamic nature of developments in air transport in order to improve the economic situation, while taking full account of environmental and social needs.
MONITOR contributed to the FP7 research programme with being the basis for better strategic decision making for air transport development, and helped to support and enhance the competitiveness of European aviation industry. MONITOR serves as a pilot study, establishing such a monitoring mechanism and will proceed as a permanent activity funded by DLR.
Funding
Results
The MONITOR project supported actors with interest in the long-term air transport development. Given this objective in the MONITOR project, an online portal with the followed three perspectives was elaborated:
- In the first step, a permanent scanning, selection and harmonisation of air transport relevant statistics and data had to take place as an effective monitoring process. This can only work if the most up-to-date research results and a reliable database in the background strengthen it. Following this objective, a detailed (meta-)database was elaborated, which provides all interested actors a freely usable network of sources that lists detailed information on relevant air transport data but also on important framework data sources. The datasets contain in this context statistics, links, project reports and many other reference sources which are regarded as useful and established information sources that can serve to describe, analyse and evaluate the air transport development over the long-term on a global scale.
- In a second step a part of the documented data sources was used to analyse the past air transport development on global scale with the help of indicators on system internal measures and measures, which describe the interchanges between air transport and its surroundings. The elaborated indicator system allows investigating former long-term trends in air transport in a compacted, precise and fast way in order to a come to a conclusion on the most important drivers but also challenges with regard to the air transport sector.
- The third step of MONITOR handled with long-term future perspectives of global air transport. The corresponding work process included in concrete an update of the framework data and important air transport related assumptions of a set of scenarios which were developed in the 'CONSAVE 2050' project ('Constrained Scenarios on Aviation and Emissions'). This task was also based on the results of the (meta-) database. The exemplary calculations of the chosen scenario data with the AERO Modelling System showed the usability and value of a long-term view on the future air transport development. Furthermore, the scenario exercises also served the purpose to take the monitoring result into account in order to estimate on this basis the implications for the aviation development in the long-term by simultaneously addressing such important issues like air transport demand and supply, environmental problems, technology performance and policy aspects.
Strategy targets
Innovating for the future (technology and behaviour): A European Transport Research and Innovation Policy