In Europe , the CASCADE program under EUROCONTROL coordinates the implementation of ADS-B among the European states. The CASCADE applications are expected to constitute part of the baseline of the Single European Sky ATM Research (SESAR). The surveillance part of ADS-B has already reached in 2008 its initial operational capabilities. The non-ADS-B traffic and weather information upload shall reach initial operation phase in 2011.

As cleared by the CASCADE program, there are three big headings to the benefits brought by the ADS-B implementation:

1. Low cost of an ADS-B system installation and maintenance. (almost 10% of an SSR)
2. The ADS-B high accuracy and precision compared to an SSR.
3. The ADS-B will open up for future implementations of airborne safety and capacity applications.

The CRISTAL Project, under the CASCADE Program, aims at validating the implementation of ADS-B in European states. The validation process implies several ADS-B trial sites across Europe . The following is a list of the European states currently participating in the CRISTAL Project:

Cyprus (Larnaca), Turkey (2 locations), Greece ( Athens ), Italy (7 locations), France (3 locations), Austria ( Innsbruck ), Germany (Frankfurt), Netherlands ( Amsterdam ), UK (4 locations), Sweden (12 locations), as well as the Portuguese Azores Island . And very soon, ADS-B implementation will be launched in several of these locations.

For further readings, please visit the EUROCONTROL CASCADE official webpage