The challenge
The first and absolute priority for Belgocontrol, the autonomous public company in charge of the safety of air traffic in the civil airspace for which the Belgian State is responsible, is the safety of airline passengers, crews, aircraft and cargo leaving from and arriving at Belgian airports or travelling through the country’s skies. Making their transport possible involves a myriad of IT systems and the security of those systems is paramount. Cybersecurity is extremely important to make sure that Belgocontrol has full control of what’s happening in Belgium’s airspace.
To support its cybersecurity efforts, Belgocontrol chose to work with an expert partner that could act as its security officer, providing guidance and advice in this crucial area, and help it plan and implement actions to safeguard it data. PwC is that expert.
Securing operations
Playing an advisory role, we work with Belgocontrol to identify how best to secure its operations and highlight potential risks. Based on findings, we’re helping the client introduce necessary actions.
As to why Belgcontrol opted to work with PwC for this important mission, CEO Johan Decuyper says, "PwC presented the best offer, showing greater technical capabilities and more in-depth knowledge compared to other firms. We’re experts in our business and we needed to find a partner with second-to-none skills in these specific domains. We found that with PwC."
Delivering workable solutions
More than offering simply advice, we delved deep into Belgocontrol’s business to make sure that we’re able to deliver relevant and workable solutions.
"The relationship with PwC is very good and very supportive. As experts in their field, they identify issues and are able to come with solutions, giving us a high level of comfort,"says Johan Decuyper.
"In PwC, we have a partner we can count on. We believe in their added value and the relationship is very productive."
Expanding our services
Alongside our role as security officer, we’ve also supported Belgocontrol with the establishment of a joint venture, with Scandinavian air navigation service providers, among others, for the restructuring of its training activities.
Having carried out the initial financial analysis, we subsequently helped Belgocontrol create a business plan and more, Johan Decuyper says, "It was thanks to PwC that we were able to arrive at a final agreement and have been able to move forward."
Assuring business continuity
And we’re supporting the organisation with business continuity, following a power failure that had a major impact on operations a couple of years ago. We’ve already helped Belgocontrol implement a number of actions, placing it in a much better position to assure business continuity in the event of a further incident.
"With PwC, we’ve been able to put scenarios in place so that should we suffer a similar outage, air traffic control services in other countries can immediately take command, assuring passenger safety," notes Johan Decuyper.
We continue to work with the client in this key area to further strengthen its capabilities.
Dealing with future disruption
Digitisation offers a number of opportunities for the automation of Belgocontrol’s operations, which brings with it both benefits and pitfalls, especially given the large number of systems and processes Belgocontrol calls on. Another important challenge for the near future is the increasing use of drones, having an impact on air traffic.
It’s also looking to secure an active role in the digital future by attracting new stakeholder investment.
Supporting future business
Going forward, Belgocontrol plans to leverage PwC’s knowledge to build internal cybersecurity capabilities and bring the function in house in the long run. We’re supporting the client in achieving this goal.
Going forward, Belgocontrol’s objective is to become one of the leading airspace safety service providers in Europe for commercial air traffic, including drones. As a long-term partner, PwC is helping the client establish a five-year plan taking into account its new strategic vision and will continue to deliver solutions to help Belgocontrol fulfil its ambitions.
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