The second edition of the Strategic Research Agenda (SRA-2) addresses the weaknesses of the first edition by:

Taking a more comprehensive and holistic view of the air transport system, including the perspective of operators.
Identifying areas of uncertainty, variance and choice by considering a range of possible future world scenarios.
Integrating the further work done by all the stakeholders in building up their interpretations of the SRA.
Taking a longer view beyond 2020.
Bringing the work on institutional and infrastructure issues closer to the needs of the technologies that they need to support and deliver.
Improving the presentation of the necessary technologies

This second edition of the Strategic Research Agenda is in three separate volumes:

The SRA-2 is a complete and self-standing document although it does not repeat all of the points, still valid, that were made in the 1^st edition. Hereafter a brief description of Volume 1 is presented:

Section 1 of the Agenda summarises the content and findings for a rapid assimilation of the main messages.

Section 2 recalls the preparation of the second edition starting from the basics of SRA-1. It covers the underlying points on the macro-economic importance of the sector and the expectation of creating between 2 and 4 million additional jobs by 2020 and with a direct impact on up to 13% of Europe ’s future GDP.The section sets out other key figures for an understanding of the sector.

It continues with the history of the Agenda and the key findings of the 1st edition. It makes the point that the Agenda is not only concerned with direct technology programmes but also about the factors that will enable these to be productive and efficient. It also reports on activities since the 1st edition, the dissemination activities and the actions already taken by governments and industries to make use of the Agenda in their technology planning measures.

The work set in hand after edition 1 to create a better assessment of likely uncertainties in the future is set out in Section 2. This scenario work enabled three clearly different possibilities for the future to be identified in addition to the base-line scenario of the 1st edition. This was an important precursor to the 2nd edition and enabled the new Agenda to deal more effectively with possible futures and to consider the technology development implications of these. This work has been one of the main advances of this edition of the Agenda.

This is taken forward in the final part of the Section by the identification of the main advances needed and delivered by this edition. The objectives for the edition are set out and the section describes the notion of the High Level Target Concepts or HLTCs. These are extensions of the scenario work to create emphasis on particular characteristics coming from the scenarios. In the evolution of this concept five HLTCs were selected:

The highly customer oriented air transport system
The highly time efficient air transport system
The highly cost efficient air transport system.
The ultra green air transport system
The ultra secure air transport system

The next Section 3 is in parts that correspond to these HLTCs and discusses each one in depth and is, in many senses, the heart of the Agenda where the technology issues are discussed. There is no sense in which one HLTC will be chosen in isolation or that technologies identified in one will not be appropriate in another but the concept allows the priorities of the technologies to be discussed and examined.

Section 3 also looks beyond the horizon of the HLTC’s and is a useful extension of the concept into the further future. By looking towards the latter part of the century and examining possible developments it adds to the understanding of what technologies should be kept alive now, or even started so that these outlying possibilities will be supported with technology at the time.

Section 4 brings the HLTCs into focus in considering an integrated view of their implications across the whole air transport system. It considers the issues as Business, Policy, Process or Technology and it is here that the wider implications of the Agenda are discussed as a whole.

In the assessment part of the Section the Agenda addresses the institutional and public implications of the work. The scope for public decisions to influence the progress of the Agenda is great. It ranges from investments in facilities, co-operation in the construction of new facilities, research co-operation, education as well as in many aspects of public policy for qualification and mobility of researchers and, indeed, in their broader availability.

The final part of this section deals with the resource and efficiency implications of the Agenda.The overall need is for the technical issues identified by the Agenda to receive more effectiveresearch. Some of this increment of progress can be delivered by greater efficiency in the research processes and the means of doing so are identified. Notwithstanding this there is a need for substantially more funding, about 65% more, to be applied from public and private sources if the issues facing the sector are to be properly addressed.