The Civil Aviation Authority (“CAA”), in exercise of the powers conferred by sections 73, 74 and 75 of the Transport Act 2000 (a), hereby makes the following Specification:

Citation and commencement

1. This Specification may be cited as the Civil Aviation Authority (UK Airspace Design Service Charge) Specification 2026 and shall take effect on 1st June 2026.

Revocation

2. This is a new Specification. There is no prior UK Airspace Design Service (UKADS) charge specification to revoke.

Interpretation

3. (1) In this Specification –

“NERL” means NATS (En Route) plc, a company incorporated in England and Wales with number 4129273 whose registered office is at 4000 Parkway, Whiteley, Fareham, Hants PO15 7FL;

“UK AIP” means the United Kingdom Aeronautical Information Publication in force at the date of making this Specification and published under the authority of the CAA;

“UK FIR” means the London and Scottish Flight Information Regions as described in the UK AIP;

(2) Unless otherwise defined in this Specification and unless the context otherwise requires, expressions used in this Specification shall have the same respective meanings as in the Transport Act 2000 and the Air Navigation Order 2016 (b).

Charges for the UKADS

4. (1) Subject to the provisions of this Specification, the operator of any aircraft (in whatsoever State it is registered) in receipt of chargeable air services within the UK FIR, shall pay to NERL, in respect of each flight in that airspace, for the provision of the UKADS and associated services, a charge calculated according to the following formula:

r = N x U

where r is the charge for the flight,

N is the number of service units relating to that flight, and

U is the UKADS unit rate of £1.74.

(2) For the purposes of paragraph 4(1), the number of Service Units (N) shall be calculated in accordance with the formula set out in The Civil Aviation Authority (Eurocontrol Charges) Specification Order 2026:

N = d × p

where d is the distance factor for the flight in the specified airspace and p is the weight factor for the aircraft concerned.

(3) For the purposes of paragraph 4(2) the definitions of the distance and weight factor shall be consistent with the definitions as described in the Civil Aviation Authority (Eurocontrol Charges) Specification 2026:

(a) the distance factor shall be the number of kilometres in the great circle distance between the points specified in sub-paragraph (4) of this paragraph minus 20 kilometres for each landing and take-off in the specified airspace in question, divided by 100 and expressed to two places of decimals, and

(b) the weight factor, subject to the provisions of sub-paragraphs (6) and (7) of this paragraph, shall be equal to the square root of the quotient obtained by dividing by 50 the number of metric tonnes of the maximum total weight authorised of the aircraft and shall be expressed to two places of decimals.

(4) The points referred to in sub-paragraph (3) of this paragraph are:

(a) the aerodrome of departure within the specified airspace in question or, if there is no such aerodrome, the point of entry into that airspace; and

(b) the aerodrome of first destination within the specified airspace in question or, if there is no such aerodrome, the point of exit from that airspace.

(5) For the purposes of the preceding sub-paragraph, the point of entry into the specified airspace in question and the point of exit from that airspace shall be the points at which the lateral limits of the said airspace are crossed by the route described in the flight plan communicated by or on behalf of the operator of the aircraft either to the appropriate air traffic control unit or to the Flow Management Unit of Eurocontrol with any modifications thereto subsequently made or approved by or on behalf of the operator.

(6) Subject to sub-paragraph (7) below, the weight factor for an aircraft of any type shall be calculated by reference to the maximum total weight authorised of the heaviest aircraft of that type.

(7) Where an operator has indicated to Eurocontrol, within the period of one year immediately preceding the flight, the composition of the fleet of aircraft which the operator operates and which includes two or more aircraft which are different versions of the same type of aircraft, the weight factor shall be calculated by reference to the average of the maximum total weight authorised of all the operator’s aircraft of that type so indicated to Eurocontrol.

Exempt Flights

5. This Specification shall not apply to the following flights:

(a) flights by military aircraft;

(b) flights made for the purposes of search and rescue operations;

(c) flights by aircraft of which the maximum total weight authorised is 5700kg or less made entirely in accordance with the Visual Flight Rules in the UK Standardised Rules of the Air (SERA.5005 and SERA.5010)(c);

(d) flights terminating at the aerodrome from which the aircraft has taken off;

(e) flights other than the flights referred to in sub-paragraph (a) of this paragraph made exclusively for the purpose of the carriage on official business of a reigning Monarch or his immediate family, a Head of State, a Head of Government or a Government Minister;

(f) flights made exclusively for the purpose of checking or testing equipment used or intended to be used as aids to air navigation;

(g) flights made exclusively for the purpose of the instruction or testing of flight crew within the specified airspace of the United Kingdom;

(h) flights made by aircraft of which the maximum total weight authorised is less than two metric tonnes;

(i) flights made by helicopters between any point in the United Kingdom to a vessel or an off-shore installation within the area bounded by straight lines joining successively the following points-

6300N 00500W; 632833N 000000EW; thence south along the UK Median Line to 5500N 00302E; 5500N 00100W; 5600N 00230W; 5740N 00230W; 5740N 00400W; 5830N 00400W; 5830N 00500W; 6300N 00500W;

(j) flights made by helicopters between any point in the United Kingdom to a vessel or an off-shore installation within the area bounded by straight lines joining successively the following points-

5500N 00100W; 5500N 00300E; 5423N 00245E; 5256N 00309E; 5230N 00247E; 5226N 00137E; 5238N 00140E; 5251N 00124E; 5319N 00010E; 5500N 00100W.

Value Added Tax charge

6. For the purpose of reimbursing NERL in respect of value added tax payable on the provision of chargeable air services for which a charge is payable pursuant to this Specification there shall be charged an additional charge equal to the amount of such tax and the incidence of the first mentioned charge shall determine the incidence of the additional charge.

Circumstances in which charges are payable by the owner

7. If NERL is unable, after taking reasonable steps, to ascertain who is the operator, it may give notice to the owner of the aircraft that it will treat the owner as the operator for the purposes of this Specification until the owner establishes to the reasonable satisfaction of NERL that some other person is the operator; and from the time when the notice is given NERL shall be entitled, for so long as the owner is unable to establish as aforesaid that some other person is the operator, to treat the owner as if the owner were the operator, and for that purpose the provisions of this Specification (other than this paragraph) shall apply to the owner as if the owner were the operator.

By Order of the Civil Aviation Authority, [xx] June 2026

J Spence, Secretary and General Counsel, Civil Aviation Authority, Aviation House, Beehive Ringroad, Crawley West Sussex RH6 0YR

EXPLANATORY NOTE

(This note is not part of the Specification)

1. This is a new Specification, which sets out the charges payable in connection with UK Airspace Design Services provided by NATS (En Route) Plc (“NERL”).

2. The amount of the charges shall be paid to NERL in GBP.

3. Charges in connection with the UK Airspace Design Services are set at £1.74 for each service unit (paragraph 4(1)).

(a) 2000 c.38.

(b) S.I. 2016/765.

(c) UK Regulation (EU) No.923/2012 laying down the common rules of the air and operational provisions regarding services and procedures in air navigation and amending Regulations (EC) No.1035/2011, (EC) 1265/2007, (EC) No.1794/2006, (EC) No.730/2006, (EC) No.1033/2006 and (EU) No.255/2010