Effective July 1, 2025, Klaus Meier will transition from his role as Chief Technology Officer and Executive Board member to a new role as CEO Delegate European Affairs, reporting directly to the CEO of Skyguide. To ensure continuity and stability, Götz Ardey, currently Chief Business Development Officer will assume the position of CTO on an interim basis until a successor is appointed.
This appointment underscores Skyguide’s dedication to driving the modernisation of the European ATM system, ensuring capacity and safety for its customers and within the European network.
Global Airspace Radar (GAR) asked Klaus Meier and Götz Ardey to tell more about the changes and what to expect in the coming times.
GAR: Klaus, looking back at your time as CTO, what do you consider your best successes and most important lessons learned?
Klaus Meier: The implementation of a new service delivery model based on Service Oriented Architecture which works also for core ATM services. Skyguide proves that since March 2018. However, a full migration of legacy software takes longer due to the age and thus complexity of the core legacy software, in particular when you deconstruct software while running operations.
GAR: The press release mentions “The absence of essential, future-orientated regulatory frameworks from the European Commission and EASA poses significant risks and restricts our ability to advance technological improvements”. Can you elaborate on what frameworks are missing and what technological improvements you’d like to implement, which can’t be done now?
Klaus Meier: Within the regulatory framework, neither the technical nor the financial regulation supports the required and planned modernization. The regulatory load increases steadily and modern technologies, as used outside of aviation, are not yet internalized. On the economic regulation, the link between the existing plan for modernization in Europe (ATM Master Plan) is weak or non-existent and thus the incentivization to invest in the right concepts and models like the new service delivery model is missing.
GAR: Will your new role still be focused mostly on technological aspects or will it be broader? What do you expect from this new position?
Klaus Meier: We believe that this is a capacity-driven and technology enabled modernization and builds on the capabilities of modern technologies (digitalization, automation, AI). However, as outlined above, it’ll require also non-technical shifts or adaptations in the regulatory framework. The new role is based on those requirements.
GAR: Götz, what do you see as the main challenges in skyguide’s technical department at the moment?
Götz Ardey: Replacing and switching off the legacy applications while ensuring stable and safe operations as well as managing the necessary funding and collaboration with the right partners to support our forward-looking strategy.
GAR: Which part of the job are you looking forward to the most?
Götz Ardey: To continue to support the modernization of the European ATM system and working with all the colleagues in the Technical Department.
