METG/35 Paris, France, 16 to 19 September 2025

The 35th meeting of the Meteorology Group (METG/35) of the European Aviation System Planning Group (EASPG) was held at the ICAO EUR/NAT Regional Office in Paris from  16 to 19 September 2025.

The event brought together nearly 100 experts from 41 states and five international organizations – ICAO EUR/NAT Office,  the World Meteorological Organization (WMO), the European Union Aviation Safety Agency (EASA), the European Organization for the Safety of Air Navigation (EUROCONTROL), and the International Air Transport Association (IATA) – to review the current status of implementation and agree on future actions aimed at further strengthening the provision of meteorological services in support of international air navigation.

Building on a comprehensive agenda, METG/35 engaged in meaningful discussions on implementing the new Quantitative Volcanic Ash (QVA) product, sharing digital meteorological information, and proposing amendments to key EUR/NAT documents to align with the latest ICAO provisions. Delegates emphasized the vital role of System-Wide Information Management (SWIM) in driving the digital transformation of aeronautical meteorological services, highlighting the significant contributions of the Data Management Group (DMG), particularly in the implementation and validation of the IWXXM format for exchanging operational meteorological (OPMET) information.

The group reviewed the status of implementing the MET-related ASBU thread. It was noted that the AMET implementation increased from 94% to approximately 96.2%, and the Meteorological Information Exchange Model (IWXXM) implementation achieved 99%.

The meeting further emphasized the importance of strengthening regional and interregional coordination mechanisms for the exchange of meteorological data, highlighting the need for continued collaboration among States and international partners to achieve harmonization, interoperability, and global consistency.

METG/35 placed particular focus on the new provisions introduced through Amendment 82 to ICAO Annex 3 and on the implementation of the first edition of the Procedures for Air Navigation Services – Meteorology (PANS-MET, Doc 10157), as well as developments related to the World Area Forecast System (WAFS), the Satellite Distribution System for Information Relating to Air Navigation (SADIS), and updates to the EUR/NAT Volcanic Ash Contingency Plan.