RELIABLE PARTNER

1. Chairman & CEO speaking 1

BY YOUR SIDE IN 2020

2. Key Figures 5

3. Safe partner 11

4. Efficient partner 15

5. Partner in innovation 20

6. Partner for the future 23

ANNUAL REPORT

7. Corporate governance 27

8. Management report of the Board of Directors 33

9. Report of the Board of Auditors 53

10. Annual accounts 2020 67

11. Summary of the valuation rules 63

Table of contents

1RELIABLE PARTNER

Chairman & CEO speaking

How will you remember the year 2020 at skeyes?

Renaud Lorand : Regardless of the health and humanitarian consequences of the crisis, I, like everyone else, will remember 2020 as the year of a great shock to both our population and our planet as a whole. I will remember that the health crisis particularly impacted the transport sector, and within that, the aviation sector. Our partners, the airlines and the airports, have been severely and massively affected by the drastic reduction in air traffic levels. Keeping planes on the ground and seeing airport terminals completely deserted has been extremely difficult.

On the other hand, at skeyes, 2020 has also been the year in which we mobilised our forces and energy. Not only to manage and anticipate the consequences of the pandemic, but also to maintain and pursue the major strategic projects that prepare our company for tomorrow.

Johan Decuyper : My thoughts go first of all to the colleague who skeyes lost due to corona. In a broader sense, it was obviously a year of crisis management. Within skeyes, from the beginning and throughout the pandemic, we did everything we could to protect the health and safety of our employees as best as possible. We also had to look after the interests of the company: we could not let everything we had built up go to waste, although we obviously did not control all the elements ourselves. We depend on air traffic for our income, and when that stopped, it had a huge impact on our financing. But in the midst of that crisis, we did not want to lose sight of the future either: we were already thinking about how we would adapt our financing and our operations to the new realities in aviation for the years to come.

What lessons will you remember from this pandemic?

RL : The pandemic is above all a lesson in humility: the world “before” had become accustomed to hypermobility and hyperconnectivity, and the aviation sector was undoubtedly a vital link in this hypermobility, which for it rhymed with growth and profitability. Nature and the virus have brutally reminded us that this model is not immutable. The crisis is forcing us to rethink our model and to think differently about how we live and travel. Our sector, and our company, are not immune to this rethink.

The pandemic also gives us cause for optimism: in this regard, I would like to highlight the responsiveness with which the teams of skeyes were mobilised to ensure service continuity and traffic safety in working conditions restricted by health regulations. Finally, the outbreak of such a crisis reminds us how important it is to be prepared. Not only operationally, of course, but also economically. One of skeyes’ strengths in the face of the crisis was its sound financial situation, characterised in particular by an adequate cash flow, which was the result of several years of rigorous and prudent management.

JD : I was thinking above all about what we had learned from a previous difficult period at Belgocontrol. Unlike some 10 years ago, we continued to invest and recruit. The main strategic projects also continued. Of course, we took the circumstances into account and adapted plans where necessary. But we knew from experience that it would be even harder to make up for the damage if we came to a complete standstill. After all, air traffic will start up again anyway and then we have to be ready immediately. The fact that we were able to do that was, of course, due to the favourable starting position we had acquired ourselves. And we also know that the financial efforts we are making now will be made up for precisely by the revival of air traffic. We had turned skeyes into a healthy company before the crisis and skeyes will still be a healthy company after the crisis.

What do you look back on positively in 2020?

RL : Two essential partners of skeyes have been mobilised at its side: firstly, its staff, either by ensuring control operations day and night, 7 days a week, through a physical presence in the installations, or by imaginatively reorganising the activities to ensure work and training in compliance with health regulations. In addition, our sole shareholder, the Belgian State, which recognises the vital nature of our business for the country, has been at skeyes’ side at every key moment of the crisis.

JD : The most important thing is that we have had relatively few cases of COVID-19 within skeyes for what is after all a group of 900 people. And we have also been able to prevent problems on other fronts for all our employees: by systematically eliminating historically accumulated leave, we have not had to resort to temporary unemployment and have been able to maintain our operations continuously. This is certainly not an easy task, but together we have succeeded in achieving it.

2 SKEYES / RELIABLE PARTNER / 1. CHAIRMAN & CEO SPEAKING

How should skeyes overcome this period?

RL : Every crisis also offers opportunities. A momentum has been created for strategic positioning. Our partners are more than ever aware of the importance of air traffic control and of having their own national ANSP for Belgium’s own airspace. This is an enormous asset for the attractiveness and accessibility of our airspace and therefore in the interest of the entire aviation sector in our country. In recent years, skeyes has worked hard on the continuity of its services, on customer friendliness and on reliability. The entire aviation sector can now make use of these assets for reviving air traffic in our country and strengthening our international position.”

JD : By realising that we are not alone. Unfortunately, the entire aviation sector has been hit hard. But together we can pull through again. skeyes was once again a reliable partner for all its stakeholders and we will continue to play that role. That is why it was so important to continue investing in the improvement of our services; just think of A-SMGCS, the digital towers we are going to build, or the renewal of SAS2. We are ready for when air traffic recovers; our partners can count on us: airports, airlines and all companies active in the sector. And we have a vested interest in it ourselves, because our income also depends on that recovery.

Renaud Lorand, Chairman of the Board of Directors

RELIABLE PARTNER / 1. CHAIRMAN & CEO SPEAKING / SKEYES 3

What should skeyes pay attention to, apart from the post-crisis recovery?

RL : First of all, it should be emphasised that the crisis is not over and all the international forecasts indicate that the impact of the crisis on air transport will continue to be felt for several years. The priority will therefore be to manage the consequences of the crisis, in particular by applying the measures adopted at European level. Crisis management cannot and should not overshadow the other, sometimes existential, challenges. After all, even before the crisis, the pressure on aviation to become greener was growing. The pandemic has increased that pressure even further. We as a sector must take up this challenge. And we want to. This change will not happen overnight, but we must already invest in it. We are already doing this. skeyes focuses on green landings where possible, fully supports the renewable energy sector - in

combination with air traffic safety, of course - and our CSR policy is meanwhile strongly anchored in the operational management. Together with our partners, other initiatives are underway to learn from each other and strengthen each other in making our sector more sustainable.

JD : Our whole crisis strategy was to get back on track with our pre-2020 plans as soon as possible. One of the pillars of this was innovation. We continue to invest in new technologies but also in economic and social developments. I fully endorse what our Chairman said about sustainability. And I will add another example: drones. We have already gained a great deal of experience and knowledge in this area through very concrete cooperation projects with partners who are exploring the possibilities of drones in real life. More and more, we are taking on our future role as a frontrunner. We are helping to develop technology to support drones, to ensure the safety of all air traffic and to become a knowledge centre and hub for the entire aviation ? sector in our country.

Johan Decuyper, CEO

4 SKEYES / RELIABLE PARTNER / 1. CHAIRMAN & CEO SPEAKING

2

The COVID-19 pandemic has severely affected the aviation industry and many parts of the global economy. skeyes has made every effort to continue to ensure the safety and efficiency of air traffic in Belgium – 24 hours a day, 7 days a week. Our 900 employees have remained at the service of our customers: airlines, airports, the aviation sector and public authorities, in order to also be able to provide the transport of goods essential for the economy and the fight against the pandemic: masks, hydroalcoholic gel, medical equipment and vaccines. skeyes has also prepared itself to support its customers in the future resumption of activities at full capacity by continuing to innovate and to develop its services to support air traffic and the economy of tomorrow.


Key Figures

Number of flights and flight movements

560,331flight movements controlled by skeyes in 2020. A flight may be subject to several movements, such as for example when made to wait in a holding pattern for landing. The number of movements reflects the workload of air traffic controllers.

9.4 millionspassengers flew in 2020 from or through Belgian public airports.

-73%fewer passengers compared to 2019. The health crisis hit the aviation sector hard in 2020.

509,415number of flights managed by skeyes.

1.1 million tons of goods passed through Liege Airport in 2020, an increase of 24%. This rise is due to the transport of medical equipment but also to the growth in e-commerce and parcel transport.

- 49.96% drop in air traffic compared to 2019 (number of flights). The impact of the health crisis on the volume of air traffic has been enormous.

6 SKEYES / BY YOUR SIDE IN 2020 / 2. KEY FIGURES

Number of flight movements managed per unit

CANAC2 Brussels Airport Antwerp Airport Charleroi Airport Liege Airport Ostend Airport

Number of flights managed per unit

AIR TRAFFIC CONTROL

278.885 (-53,2%)

95.812 (-59,1%)

38.154 (-26,2%)

58.388 (-40,0%)

56.260 (-4,2%)

32.832 (-24,1%)

AIR TRAFFIC CONTROL

279.665 (-59,1%)

95.811 (-59,1%)

25.587 (-28,5%)

45.534 (-44,5%)

42.911 (-1,2%)

19.907 (-24,6%)

7BY YOUR SIDE IN 2020 / 2. KEY FIGURES / SKEYES

Punctuality: efficient management of air traffic flows

Comparison of average delay per flight in FABEC (CRSTMP causes)

2019 2020

LVNL skeyes skyguide MUAC DSNA DFS

MIN

/FLI

GH

T

1

0.9

0.8

0.7

0.6

0.5

0.4

0.3

0.2

0.1

00.04 0.01

Total

99.3%of flights were managed in a punctual manner by skeyes in 2020.

En-route traffic

0.06 min / flight (-92.5%)= 3.6 seconds delay per flight

CRSTMP causesThese are causes that can be influenced by air traffic control: C-Capacity, R-Routing, S-Staffing, T-Equipment, M-Airspace Management, P-Special Events skeyes has an en-route punctuality rate better than the FABEC average (Belgium, Netherlands, Luxembourg, Germany, France and Switzerland).

skeyes : 0.06 min/flightAverage for FABEC control centres: 0.14 min/flight

Punctuality at airports

BRUSSELS AIRPORT

0.37 min / flight= 22.2 seconds delay per flight

Weather conditions are the main cause of arrival delays at Brussels Airport (90.8%).

0.03 min / flight= 1.8 seconds delay per flight if only the CRSTMP causes that skeyes can control are taken into account.

ANTWERP AIRPORT

0 min / flight= 0 seconds delay per flight

BRUSSEL SOUTH CHARLEROI AIRPORT


LIEGE AIRPORT

0.15 min / flight= 9 second delay per flight

Weather conditions are the sole cause of arrival delays at Liege Airport (100%).

OSTEND-BRUGES AIRPORT

0 min / flight= 0 second delay per flight

0.85

0.06

0.15

0.040.09

0.01

0.76

0.08

1.19

0.17


Pricing changes in 2020

DUC

The Determined Unit Cost (DUC) is a calculation basis for setting the en-route unit rate, i.e. the price of a service unit in a given airspace. Due to the health crisis, performance plans relating to service costs will only be submitted to the European bodies in October 2021 for the 3rd five-year reference period (2020-2024).

91,01 €

unit rate charged by skeyes for an en-route service unit in the airspace for which it is responsible

For en-route traffic, the charges are in proportion to the distance flown and the square root of an aircraft’s mass. A service unit corresponds to the control of an aircraft of 50 tonnes over 100 kilometres.

skeyes continued to hire for the resumption of activities

903number of employees on 31 December 2020.

61new employees were hired in 2020.

11new air traffic controllers completed their training and entered into service in 2020.

15 candidates air traffic controllers started their training in 2020.

Number of employees on 31 December

2014 2015 2016 2017 2018 2019 2020

EM

PLO

YEE

S

950

900

850

800

750

700

787797

806

845

872

891903

9BY YOUR SIDE IN 2020 / 2. KEY FIGURES / SKEYES

COVID-19: internal measures to ensure business continuity

Weather and aeronautical information: data essential for safety

9,624Notams produced by the skeyes Brussels Notam Office

Notam (Notice to Airmen) are messages published for the purpose of notifying pilots of changes in airspace and on the ground.

1,464number of special activity requests handled by the skeyes SPACC unit

The special activities coordinated by the SPACC unit include flights to calibrate ground-based air navigation infrastructure, photo and video flights (e.g. during major sports events), drone flights in controlled airspace, thermal-imaging flights as well as fireworks.

144,500surgical masks have been distributed to staff.

2,230litres of alcohol gels have been used.


3

The drop in air traffic from the second quarter of 2020 significantly impacted the number of Safety-Related Occurrences (SROs). Safety performance in 2020 remained among the best, despite the additional difficulties caused by the management of the crisis. Safety is the absolute top priority for skeyes and the foundation of its corporate culture. It is constantly being analysed and improved. Promoted on a daily basis, it is the ultimate objective of everything that skeyes employees do.


Safe partner

Evolution of incidents’ number

For the third time in the company’s history, skeyes recorded no category A incidents, the most severe. Although not matching the absolute record set in 2016, when no category A or B incidents occurred, safety performance in 2020 also highlights the effectiveness of the management of the health crisis in the company and the maintenance of its priority mission at the highest level.

The severity of incidents is evaluated by independent experts on a scale from A (severe) to E (no impact on safety). The severity of an incident is determined by the horizontal and vertical separations between the aircraft and by the level of control over the situation.

0category A incidents(severe).

3category B incidents (major).

5.4category A and B incidents per million movements.

0category A incidents per million movements.

INC

IDE

NTS

Evolution of the number of category A (severe) en B (major)

2009 2010 2011 2012 2013 2014 2015 2016 2017 2018 2019 2020

17.5

15

12.5

10

7.5

5

2.5

0

5 53

4

2

11

2 1 2 1 1

7 4

33

43 3 6

3

12 SKEYES / BY YOUR SIDE IN 2020 / 3. SAFE PARTNER

A firmly established safety culture

A royal decree providing a legal framework for Just Culture and its application came into force on 26 August 2020. skeyes requested such a framework in order to continue to promote its Just Culture vision, which has always guided its actions in incident management:

the search for causes in order to gain a thorough understanding of the incident and to take appropriate measures so that a similar event does not occur again.

building a climate of trust by not seeking to identify and blame the person responsible while clearly outlining unacceptable behaviour and actions.

This Just Culture vision enables skeyes to implement formalised, proactive and responsive management, and the firm establishment of a safety culture within the company through which operational staff can work in full honesty and transparency.

933incident reports in 2020

All incidents, no matter how minor or insignificant, are reported. The skeyes’ air traffic controllers reported a total of 933 incidents in 2020. This 41.4% decrease in reported events in 2020 compared to 2019 is due to the fall in air traffic as a result of the health crisis, which reached nearly 50%.

167incident reports per 100,000 movements

While the absolute number of incident reports decreased due to the drop in traffic, the number of reports per 100,000 movements increased from 148 in 2019 to 167 in 2020, demonstrating once again the progression of the safety and reporting culture.

Number of incidents reported by skeyes air traffic controllers

2009 2010 2011 2012 2013 2014 2015 2016 2017 2018 2019 2020

2,000

1,500

1,000

500

099 189

339 381 466622

680

1,104

1,809

1,489

1,589

933INC

IDE

NTS

In ten years, the number of incident reports has increased significantly overall. This does not mean that there are more incidents than before, but rather that they are increasingly systematically reported in order to be analysed and to be able to draw learning lessons from them for improving safety.

Two factors have contributed in recent years to the increase in these incident reports:

the firm establishment of a safety culture as well as the continuous application and promotion of Just Culture;

the optimisation of incident reporting tools.

The 62% jump between 2015 and 2016 is also due to European Regulation 376/2014 introduced at the end of 2015, which expanded the types of incidents to be reported.

13BY YOUR SIDE IN 2020 / 3. SAFE PARTNER / SKEYES

The most frequently reported incidents

The top three places in the ranking of the most reported events are occupied by incidents completely unrelated to the mission of skeyes, but the reporting of which is required by European legislation: interference with wildlife (154) tops the list ahead of ELT (Emergency Locator Transmitter) transmissions (128) and technical problems on aircraft (102) reported by pilots.

In 4th position, call sign confusion incidents increased by 45.4% compared to 2019 (64 events versus 44). This increase is being closely monitored by skeyes’ Safety Management Unit and could be due in part to the additional traffic at Liege Airport due to the health crisis.

Thanks to the coordinated efforts of skeyes, the BCAA and the police, incidents relating to the blinding of pilots with laser pointers, which are in 5th place, continued to decrease in 2020: 56 events were reported in 2020 compared to 79 in 2019, a 29.1% decrease.

The incidents for which skeyes may be considered responsible, include airspace infringements. Linked to the volume of traffic and mainly due to general aviation or leisure traffic (VFR – visual flight rules), these incidents decreased by 50.5% in 2020 (52 events in 2020 compared to 105 in 2019).

Another type of incident that directly concerns skeyes’ safety performance: runway incursions. In 2020, 27 runway

incursions were reported, compared to 26 the previous year, a slight increase of 3.8%. However, there was a decrease in the involvement of skeyes, confirmed for six of these incursions (i.e. 22% of them) compared to seven in 2019 (27%). It should be noted that there had already been a sharp decrease in this type of incident in 2019 (-42%).

A major indicator for assessing skeyes’ safety performance is the compliance with minimum separations between aircraft.

-77.3% incidents relating to non-compliance with safety distances between aircraft

7 non-compliance with minimum separations between aircraft attributable to skeyes

While there were 44 in 2019, only 10 such incidents were reported in 2020, a decrease of 77.3%.

In 2020, only 8 incidents involving drones flying in unauthorised areas were reported.

Of the 933 incidents reported, investigations established that skeyes bore responsibility in 37 of them, of which more than 73% (27) were category E, that is to say without any impact on the level of safety.

431investigations into safety-related events were conducted by skeyes in 2020.

6safety reminders.

35safety recommendations.

The most frequently reported incidents in 2020 vs 2019

Report of drone activity

Runway incursion

Inadequate separation

Laser pointer Airspace infringement

100

80

60

40

20

0

105

INC

IDE

NTS

5256

1027

8

79

44

2628

14 SKEYES / BY YOUR SIDE IN 2020 / 3. SAFE PARTNER

4

While skeyes’ primary task is to ensure air traffic safety, it also makes every effort each day to provide the most efficient services by ensuring smooth traffic flows, reducing delays to a minimum, optimising costs and ensuring the sustainability of air navigation. Good tactical traffic management is essential to ensure this efficiency, but also upstream work in the configuration of the airspace. skeyes conducts projects in all key areas to provide the best experience to its customers as well as to passengers and airspace users.


Efficient partner

Punctuality: in time for a new departure

The punctuality of an aircraft depends on many factors, some of which can be controlled by air navigation management (grouped under the acronym CRSTMP - C-Capacity, R-Routing, S-Staffing, T-Equipment, M-Airspace management, P-Special events) and some - such as the weather - are beyond anyone’s control. Other factors are dependent on airport services. In all circumstances, in flight or on arrival at an airport, skeyes manages traffic in order to keep delays to a minimum and thus reduce costs for its customers, waiting times for passengers and the environmental impact.

En-route delays


Average en-route ATFM delay per flight (CRSTMP causes). This figure represents the average delay per flight caused by skeyes’ en-route air navigation services. This delay occurred in the first quarter of 2020, before the impact of the health crisis on traffic volumes.


Average en-route ATFM delay per flight in FABEC airspace (CRSTMP causes). FABEC comprises six countries (Belgium, France, Germany, Luxembourg, the Netherlands and Switzerland) and manages more than 55% of European air traffic. skeyes’ performance in terms of en-route punctuality helped reduce the average en-route delay in FABEC.

BRUSSELS AIRPORT

0.37 min / flight= 22.2 seconds delay per flight on arrival at Brussels Airport for all causes.

90.8% of these delays are due to weather conditions.

0.03 min / flight= 1.8 seconds delay per flight on arrival at Brussels Airport if only the CRSTMP causes that skeyes can control are taken into account.

ANTWERP AIRPORT


BRUSSEL SOUTH CHARLEROI AIRPORT


LIEGE AIRPORT

0.15 min / flight= 9 seconds delay per flight

Weather conditions are the sole cause of arrival delays at Liege Airport (100%).

OSTEND-BRUGES AIPORT


Arrival delays at airports

To assess the performance of air navigation in terms of airport punctuality, only arrivals are taken into account. The timely departure of an aircraft is dependent on many other factors - such as ground services (baggage, refuelling, etc.) - which are beyond skeyes’ control, but which are coordinated with skeyes through an information exchange application based on the concept of Airport CDM (Collaborative Decision Making) and developed by skeyes. This application - the AMS (Airport Movement System) - makes it possible to effectively manage not only airport air traffic control activities but also the coordination of all ground services in order to optimise traffic flows at airports.

Total in 2020

99.3%of flights were managed in a punctual manner by skeyes.

16 SKEYES / BY YOUR SIDE IN 2020 / 4. EFFICIENT PARTNER

Procedures to limit the impact on the environment

Coordinating activities at the airport to effectively manage traffic flows also has a positive impact on fuel consumption and therefore on emissions, local air quality, noise and costs for airlines. Aircraft engines are started up at the right time and waiting times on taxiways are kept to a minimum.

92.0% of departing aircraft at Brussels Airport have received approval to start up their engines at the expected time (TSAT - Target Start-up Approval Time)

98.4% of aircraft at Brussels Airport taxied between the runway and their stand in less than the average time required (VTT - Variable Taxi Time)

Green landings (CDO - Continuous Descent Operations)

Another way to reduce aircraft consumption is to manage air traffic so that aircraft can be landed using the Continuous Descent Operation (CDO) procedure. The CDO - also known as green landing - is an operation in which the aircraft descends continuously, employing minimum engine thrust to the greatest possible extent, depending on the characteristics of the flight and the air traffic situation. This enables a reduction in noise pollution, fuel consumption and greenhouse gas emissions.

In 2020

77.7%of landings followed the green landing procedure at Brussels Airport in 2020.

51.3%of landings followed the green landing procedure at Brussels South Charleroi Airport in 2020.

71.4%of landings followed the green landing procedure at Liege Airport in 2020.

Collaborative Environmental Management

The objective of Collaborative Environmental Manage-ment (CEM) is to strengthen cooperation with airlines and airports in order to take joint initiatives that reduce the environmental impact of airport operations.

At Brussels Airport, since its launch in 2018, CEM has delivered very good results, including the improvement of green landings (CDO), the reduction of low-altitude holding, single-engine taxiing on the airport’s taxiways, etc.

In September 2020, CEM was launched at Liege Airport in partnership with SOWAER (Société Wallonne des Aéroports) and the main airlines operating at Liège Airport. First project planned: the improvement of CDOs to reduce noise pollution and fuel consumption.

17BY YOUR SIDE IN 2020 / 4. EFFICIENT PARTNER / SKEYES

Airspace structure and air routes are very important elements in the optimisation of traffic flows. The shortest possible trajectories routes are advantageous in terms of fuel consumption and emissions but also often in terms of cost for airlines. skeyes supports them by conducting projects primarily on two fronts: civil-military cooperation and the reorganisation of airspace.

Civil-military cooperation

Almost half of Belgian airspace consists of military training and operations zones. These zones can be made available to civil air traffic when they are not put to military use with the benefit of it being possible to offer airlines much more direct routes. The safety of these operations requires seamless coordination in accordance with Flexible Use of Airspace (FUA) procedures. skeyes and the Belgian Defence are working ever more closely together to improve this coordination as well as in other areas such as training or Aeronautical Information Management with the publication of a joint AIP.

On 2 December 2020, skeyes and the Belgian Defence celebrated the first anniversary of the colocation of civil and military air traffic control in the CANAC 2 air traffic control centre in Steenokkerzeel. This colocation greatly facilitates coordination and work for the joint management of Belgian airspace.

In June 2020, an important step was taken towards increased civil-military cooperation in air traffic control services with the commissioning of the new “supervisor

Ever shorter trajectories

suite”. This workstation is the heart of the operations of the CANAC 2 air traffic control centre and it now brings together skeyes and Defence supervisors, which is a key factor for continued cooperation between the two partners. Through direct interaction between supervisors, coordination and communication are faster and clearer, enabling the needs of both parties to be met for the even more optimal use of airspace.

As part of the flexible use of airspace in Belgium, the Airspace Management Cell (AMC) has been operational since 21 September 2020. It is a civil-military airspace management unit in which continuous consultation is crucial. CIV-MIL coordination ensures that airspace safety and capacity increases and that civilian and military air operations are more efficient and flexible.

Reorganisation of airspace

In December 2020, the SAS3 project was finalised and put into operation. It involved making significant adjustments to the airspace referred to as “Sector 3” in the Netherlands. skeyes has worked closely with LVNL since early 2018 with the aim of optimising air navigation in the very busy airspace over the Netherlands and Belgium.

The operational objective was to reduce the high workload in the current segmentation of airspace managed by the Amsterdam control centre within Sector 3 by reconfiguring it and reorganising the corresponding traffic flows to airports such as Amsterdam, Eindhoven and Rotterdam.

18 SKEYES / BY YOUR SIDE IN 2020 / 4. EFFICIENT PARTNER

5

Continuing our mission, our activity, preparing for the upturn and contributing to the recovery of an entire sector, creating and facilitating new opportunities... these objectives drove skeyes’ determination and motivation over the course of 2020. skeyes has focused more than ever on technological innovations and on creativity in operational solutions to make its services ever more efficient for the benefit of its customers and the entire aviation community strongly affected by the consequences of the health crisis.


Partner in innovation

Drones: a new challenge

The use of airspace is undergoing a complete transforma-tion with the emergence of a new type of traffic: drones. Unmanned, operating in very varied (urban) environments depending on their use or mission, drones represent a very buoyant sector from an economic point of view but one that is also very promising for other uses, particularly medical, because they enable very rapid transportation that is not dependent on road traffic, which is often sat-urated.

> 1,000 drone flights in controlled airspace were coordinated by the skeyes Special Activities Coordination Cell (SPACC)

10,433 professional drone flights were managed via the Droneguide app

31 Decembre 2020

This date marks the entry into force of new European legislation devoted to drones with the basic principle that drones are permitted throughout the airspace except in specific areas – the so-called UASs (Unmanned Aircraft System) - where the use of drones is restricted to very specific conditions. As an operator of UAS zones in the CTRs (Control zones) of the airports for which it is responsible, skeyes defined and deployed an operational concept in 2020 to manage the use of drones in these zones. A new tool - Drone Service Application (DSA) - was launched on 30 December 2020 to facilitate the application of this operational concept, to inform drone operators and to refer them to the tools that SkeyDrone makes available to them.

More info: https://www.skeyes.be/fr/services/drone-service-application/

6th NeTWorK

At the end of 2020, SkeyDrone, Proximus and DroneMatrix pooled their expertise to develop an integrated platform, enabling drones to perform missions on demand for industrial applications. The platform will be named “6th NeTWorK” and is under development.

Helicus Aero Initiative

skeyes also contributes to a public-private partnership bringing together partners from different backgrounds, the expertise of which is used to develop an optimal environment for deploying services based on the use of drones. The Helicus Aero Initiative - Scheduling, Connectivity & Security (HAI-SCS) project, initiated in 2019, achieved encouraging results in 2020. All aspects are covered by the partners, including technological and logistical aspects (5G, artificial intelligence, cybersecurity, etc.), operational aspects with the contribution of skeyes, as well as legal and regulatory aspects (insurance, contribution of regional innovation agencies).

SkeyDrone came into being on 10 February 2020. A wholly-owned subsidiary of skeyes, SkeyDrone specialises in drone operations. It offers planning, authorisation, management and coordination solu-tions for drone pilots and operators, and drone traf-fic visualisation tools, with a view to safely integra-ting them into air traffic. It also offers drone traffic surveillance services to authorities and critical ins-tallation operators.

In 2020, SkeyDrone focused on developing and marketing its software platform.

20 SKEYES / BY YOUR SIDE IN 2020 / 5. PARTNER IN INNOVATION

https://www.skeyes.be/fr/services/drone-service-application/

https://www.skeyes.be/fr/services/drone-service-application/

SAFIR

Drones are also central to the SAFIR (Safe And Flexible Integration of Initial U-Space Services in a Real Environment) project to which skeyes has actively contributed. A demonstration took place in September 2019 in the port and city of Antwerp showing the safe and seamless integration of drone traffic into a complex environment. The project was finalised in 2020.

The encouraging results of the SAFIR project led to a similar project in the field of medical transportation in urban areas: SAFIR-Med (Safe and Flexible Integration of Advanced U-Space Services Focusing on Medical Air Mobility). The aim is to identify solutions for the integration of safe, sustainable and socially acceptable urban air mobility for the benefit of the community by focusing on medical applications. Launched in December 2020, the project provides for demonstrations similar to those of the SAFIR project in several cities including Antwerp. skeyes is committed to this ambitious project and will contribute its expertise in the development of an operational concept (CONOPS) for the completely safe integration of drones in the airspace.

SAFIR and SAFIR-Med are projects of the SESAR (Single European Sky ATM Research) programme.

SESAR

The SESAR programme is the technological pillar of the Single European Sky. It aims to improve airspace man-agement through the modernisation and harmonisation of ATM technologies and systems. Since the launch of SESAR in 2005, skeyes has contributed to numerous projects in the different phases (Definition 2005-2008, Development 2008-2024 and Deployment 2015-2035).

Safe landings regardless of visibility conditions

skeyes was part of the consortium selected to carry out landing validation tests using the EFVS (Enhanced Flight Visual System) at Antwerp airport.

The on-board camera system offers pilots an improved view of the runway and of the airport environment during approach and landing phases when visibility conditions are poor. This technology is of particular interest to regional airports not equipped with ILS CAT-II or CAT-III. It helps to increase not only safety, but also efficiency and capacity. The impact on the environment is reduced because aircraft do not have to be diverted to another airport if there is insufficient visibility.

The SESAR AAL 2 - EFVS (Augmented Approaches to Land - Enhanced Flight Visual System) project was finalised in 2020. skeyes played a leading role in the effective planning and execution of EFVS demonstration flights in Antwerp. These flights showed that EFVS technology is safe and relatively easy to implement.

21BY YOUR SIDE IN 2020 / 5. PARTNER IN INNOVATION / SKEYES

Clean Sky

Making aviation more environmentally-friendly is the ambitious goal of the Clean Sky programme. This public-private partnership brings together the European Commission and the aviation industry to develop advanced technologies that will help to increase the environmental performance of aviation significantly.

In June 2020, skeyes mobilised its expertise in the Dispatcher 3 project. It consists of optimising pre-flight operations, such as drawing up the flight plan, using data processing software that makes it possible to estimate the variability between a flight plan and the flight actually carried out. The Dispatcher 3 project will provide very valuable tools for dispatchers, pilots and planners to improve flight efficiency.

Digital control towers

Another development with the potential to increase the efficiency and flexibility of air navigation services in the future: digital control towers. They will make it possible to move away from a fixed building for airport air traffic control and offer air traffic controllers an even more accurate view of airport grounds and their surroundings.

In 2020, skeyes decided to gradually equip all Belgian airports with digital towers. A public procurement contract was subsequently launched and contacts were established with the regional entities to define all the aspects of this strategic collaboration. This innovative technology will propel skeyes and participating airports towards the digitalisation of air traffic control.

2020 saw the implementation of a strategic programme for the purpose of coordinating this ambitious technolog-ical but also human change.

Contributing to renewable energy

By offering its expertise to developers active in green energy, skeyes facilitates the installation of wind farms by ensuring safe coexistence with air traffic.

407new applications for permission to install wind turbines submitted to skeyes in 2020.

306received a positive opinion. The other applications are in the process of being examined or require additional information (68), were refused for safety reasons (24), or were withdrawn by the applicant (9).

80new wind turbines that had previously received a positive opinion from skeyes were built and put into operation in 2020.

Wind turbines constructed per province in 2020

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Antwerp Hainaut Limburg Liege Luxemburg Namur East Flanders West Flanders

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22 SKEYES / BY YOUR SIDE IN 2020 / 5. PARTNER IN INNOVATION

6

The health crisis has had an unprecedented impact on the aviation sector. 2020 will remain a dark year for airlines, airports and all the economic and human activity they create. During this difficult period, skeyes decided to remain resolutely focused on the future, that of its customers, of air transport and of its societal role, which has become essential. For this reason, skeyes has continued to mobilise to prepare for the coming resumption of activities at full capacity throughout the aviation sector. By continuing to invest in people, skills and creativity, skeyes wants to perform even better than before and support more than ever the aviation world in rebuilding a bright future.


Partner for the future

Employee Assistance Program

This support service was launched in June 2020 and aims to offer psychological, emotional, practical and mental support to employees and their family members.

216 employees registered for a free health check-up organised in the workplace for those aged over 45.

36 employees are involved in the Senior Potential Programme. A management training programme that opens up prospects for development within skeyes.

121 employees registered for free language courses delivered as from January 2021.

The future is human

In 2020, skeyes kept on hiring in order to continue to carry out its mission and prepare for recovery.

61new employees were hired to strengthen skeyes in 2020.

11new air traffic controllers completed their two-year training and joined the operational teams.

15 air traffic controller candidates started their training following the 2020 recruitment exam.

1070 candidates sat the FEAST 1, the first test of the air traffic controller recruitment exam in 2020. They were welcomed with exceptional measures due to the health crisis.

903employees at skeyes as at 31 December 2020256 women >< 647 men

skeyes’ human resources policy places an emphasis on establishing a genuine win-win relationship between the company and its employees. This constructive relationship is one of the focuses of the company’s “Partner with our People” strategy.

COVID-19 pandemic control

From the start of the health crisis in March 2020, skeyes immediately took the appropriate measures to protect its staff and the crucial mission it fulfils every day: ensuring the safety of air traffic. The continuation of this mission has enabled the transportation of medical equipment such as masks, hand sanitisers and vaccines.

This policy is based, among other things, on the involvement of staff in the company’s strategy, the strengthening of skills and concern for the well-being of employees both within the company and within their families, and their extra-professional environment. This approach has been very useful in this time of health crisis, when isolation and organisational problems may have affected employee morale.

24 SKEYES / BY YOUR SIDE IN 2020 / 6. PARTNER FOR THE FUTURE

+24%growth in freight transport at Liege Airport, which has been designated as the main medical equipment hub for Europe by the World Health Organization (WHO).

1.1 millionton of goods were handled at Liege Airport in 2020.

10 millionCOVID vaccine doses were exported via Brussels Airport.

144,500surgical masks were distributed to skeyes staff as from April 2020.

31,000FFP2 masks were provided to skeyes’ operational departments, which have to work on site.

2,000sustainable and reusable masks were sent to employees.

2,230 litersof hand sanitiser were used via 70 totem dispensers placed in strategic locations in all the company’s buildings.

470plexi screens were installed in offices to further reduce the risk of virus transmission in the workplace.

Building the future together

The aviation world is a chain whose links must be perfectly connected to deliver maximum safety and efficiency. This interconnection is even more important today to build a new future after the unprecedented crisis that has hit our sector hard.

skeyes remains attentive to its customers, their needs and their expertise and has taken several initiatives to consult all airports according to specific protocols.

Regular meetings and workshops are being organised - Steerco/Business review meetings - to discuss recurring topics such as customer satisfaction, safety issues, work planning, review of technical and operational issues, projects, commercial discussions and demand management.

These issues are monitored by the skeyes Customer Affairs service via a specific platform.

Internal communication was also essential in the fight against the pandemic

33 special communications were disseminated on all communication media to inform staff about good practices to protect themselves from the virus, the measures in effect within the company and the evolution of the situation.

A special section has been created on our intranet portal to gather all the information resources concerning the struggle against the health crisis: advice on how to organise yourself in teleworking, the wearing of masks, washing and disinfecting your hands, managing your stress, what to eat to boost your immunity, information on vaccination, etc.

All these measures taken since the start of the crisis have enabled skeyes to be prepared and to ensure the full continuity of its mission.

25BY YOUR SIDE IN 2020 / 6. PARTNER FOR THE FUTURE / SKEYES

Corporate social responsibility (CSR)

skeyes believes that the future we are building must be based on solid foundations. It must be sustainable. For this reason, skeyes pays particular attention to its social and environmental responsibility. This is the case in its operations with numerous initiatives such as Collaborative Environmental Management, green landings or cooperation with the Defence for the flexible use of airspace, but this concern for efficiency also concerns skeyes’ internal operations. It aims to be one of the best air navigation service providers in Europe in terms of sustainability by 2025.

skeyes is committed to continuously providing the safest and most efficient services while integrating sustainability into daily activities, increasing employee involvement and encouraging the sharing of these values with our stakeholders and the community as a whole.

3pillars underpin skeyes’ CSR strategy: Sustainable, Engaged and Shared.

50%of the skeyes vehicle fleet will consist of electric, hybrid or CNG vehicles by 2025.

7,050 kgof fruit were distributed to staff in 2020 in baskets in the kitchenettes.

10e-bikes are available for on-site travel to reduce the use of cars.

CSR week

From 21 to 25 September 2020, the CSR Week was held, dedicated to all sustainability-related activities. Webinars to inform staff about the CSR programme were organised around the themes of green mobility with TomorrowLab, diversity with expert Hanan Challouki and climate with Alain Hubert, founding president of the International Polar Foundation to which skeyes donated radio communication equipment.

Circular economy

In 2020, skeyes donated decommissioned IT equipment in perfect working order to the Close the Gap association, which aims to reduce the digital divide between industrialised countries and developing and emerging countries.

26 SKEYES / BY YOUR SIDE IN 2020 / 6. PARTNER FOR THE FUTURE

7ANNUAL REPORT

Corporate governance

skeyes’ governance model

As an autonomous public company, skeyes is subject to the Law of 21 March 1991 on the reform of certain economic public companies. The provisions of the Belgian Companies Code are only applicable in cases to which the Law of 21 March 1991 expressly refers.

skeyes’ governance model is characterised by:

A Board of Directors;

The creation from within the Board of Directors of an Audit Committee, a Strategy Committee and a Remuneration Committee;

An Executive Committee consisting of the Chief Executive Officer and the members of the Executive Committee.

In addition there are also the supervisory bodies, such as the Board of Auditors and the Government Commissioner.

The Board of Directors

Composition

The regulations governing the composition of the Board of Directors and the appointment of its members are laid down in the Law of 21 March 1991.

The Board of Directors is made up of ten members, including the Chief Executive Officer and the Chairman. The Royal Decree of 18 November 2013 constituted a new Board of Directors and at least one third of the members are of the opposite sex. In addition, there are as many French speaking as Dutch speaking members. The members were appointed for a term of six years.

At 31 December 2020, the Board of Directors was composed as follows:

NAME OF THE DIRECTOR POSITION

Renaud Lorand (1) Chairman

Johan Decuyper (2) Chief Executive Officer

Fons Borginon (3) Director

Laurent de Briey (4) Director

Gérald Duffy (5) Director

Luc Laveyne (6) Director

Julie Ludmer (7) Director

Sandra Stainier (8) Director

Hugo Van Bever (9) Director

Liesbeth Van der Auwera (10) Director

In principle, the terms of office of the directors expired on November 17, 2019. As no new appointment decisions had been taken by the Government by that date, the terms of office were automatically extended, in application of the principle of continuity of the public service, until the appointment of the new directors.10

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Committees set up by the Board of Directors

The Board of Directors has set up three Committees, whose task is to assist it and to give it advice in specific fields: an Audit Committee, a Strategy Committee and a Remuneration Committee. The composition and powers of these Committees were approved during the meeting of the Board of Directors on 28 November 2013. The three Committees comply with the principle of language parity.

Powers and functioning

The Board of Directors is empowered to take any action necessary for or useful in attaining the corporate goal of the public company and supervises the management tasks carried out by the Executive Committee. The Board of Directors may delegate some of its powers to the Executive Committee.

The Board has adopted an internal regulation which details the rules and principles of its functioning.

The Board meets regularly and at least eight times a year. Additional meetings may be convened each time that the company’s interest requires this or two directors request it.

The Chairman convenes the Board. At the end of the calendar year, the timetable for meetings for the following calendar year is set. The agenda of each meeting is set by the Chairman and consists of items on which a decision must be taken and items for information.

The Board of Directors may only validly deliberate or decide if at least half its members are present or represented at the meeting.

All the decisions are in principle made by a simple majority of directors present or represented. With regard to certain specific issues detailed in the law of 21 March 1991, a two-thirds majority is required, for approval of the management contract for example. These decisions may be prepared by the specialised Committees created by the Board of Directors.

In 2020, the Board of Directors met seventeen times.

Audit Committee

The existence of this Committee is laid down in Article 173 §4 of the Law of 21 March 1991.

Composition

At 31 December 2020, the Audit Committee was composed as follows:

Mr Fons Borginon, Chairman,

Mrs Sandra Stainier, Mrs Liesbeth Van der Auwera and Mr Laurent de Briey.

The Government Commissioner and the Chairman of the Board of Directors are invited to the Committee and have an advisory vote. In practice, the Chief Executive Officer is also invited.


The Audit Committee assists the Board of Directors in verification of the accounts, budget control and any other internal auditing matters. The specific mission of this Committee is to supervise the biannual and annual financial accounts, the five-year plan and all major investments. The Committee prepares these documents for approval by the Board of Directors and checks whether the internal audit system is implemented appropriately within the organisation.

An independent internal audit function has been set up as from 1st January 2015. The position provides the Audit Committee with objective assurance against the existing risks and internal control over those risks. It also formulates recommendations to management in order to improve internal controls. To that end, an annual audit plan is drafted on the basis of an inventory of the possible subjects (the audit universe or delimitation of the audit basis), of a risk analysis and of an audit horizon in the long term (3 years). The plan will be submitted to the Audit Committee for approval. During its meetings, the Audit Committee oversees the implementation of the targeted audit programme and the ensuing results.

The Chairman of the Audit Committee will report on their meetings to the Board of Directors and the minutes will be presented to all directors.

In 2020, the Audit Committee met thirteen times.

29ANNUAL REPORT / 7. CORPORATE GOVERNANCE / SKEYES

Strategy Committee

The Strategy Committee was set up by the Board of Directors in execution of the powers entrusted to it by Article 17 §4 of the Law of 21 March 1991.

Composition

The Strategy Committee is composed of six members of the Board of Directors.

Mr Renaud Lorand, Chairman,

Mrs Julie Ludmer, Messrs Johan Decuyper, Luc Laveyne, Hugo Van Bever and Laurent de Briey.

The Government Commissioner is also invited to the meetings.


The Strategy Committee assists the Board of Directors in deciding the company strategy. Amongst other things it gives advice on the strategic priorities and on the development of the company internationally.

The Strategy Committee meets at the invitation of its Chairman, who also sets the agenda.

Remuneration Committee

The existence of this Committee is laid down in Article 17 §4 of the Law of 21 March 1991.

Composition

The Remuneration Committee is composed of four directors appointed by the Board of Directors:

Mr Renaud Lorand, Chairman,

Messrs Gerald Duffy, Hugo Van Bever and Luc Laveyne.


The Remuneration Committee makes recommendations to the Board of Directors regarding decisions on the direct and indirect pecuniary benefits granted to the members of the management bodies.

Every year the Remuneration Committee draws up a report on the remuneration of the members of the Board of Directors and the Executive Committee, which is included in the management report. The remuneration report for 2020 is detailed on page 53.

The Remuneration Committee meets at the invitation of its Chairman, who also sets the agenda. In 2020, the Remuneration Committee met six times.


Chief Executive Officer and Executive Committee

Chief Executive Officer

By Royal Decree of 2 October 2013, Mr Johan Decuyper, was appointed as Chief Executive Officer of skeyes, as from this date for a term of six years.

The term of office of the Chief Executive Officer expired on October 1, 2019. In application of the principle of continuity of public service, the term of office has been automatically extended.

Executive Committee

The Chief Executive Officer and the members of the Executive Committee together constitute the Executive Committee. The Executive Committee is chaired by the Chief Executive Officer (art. 20 of the law of 21 March 1991).

The regulations governing the appointment of the Chief Executive Officer and other members of the Executive Committee are set by the law of 21 March 1991.

Composition

On a proposal from the Chief Executive Officer and after consulting the Remuneration Committee for advice, the Board of Directors appoints members of the Executive Committee, excepting the Chief Executive Officer.

In addition to the Chief Executive Officer, Mr Johan Decuyper, the Executive Committee was composed at 31 December 2020 as follows:

Mrs Peggy Devestel, Chief Operations Officer (4),

Mr Alain Vandenabeele, Director-General Digital Transformation & New way of working (2),

Mr Christian Berlanger, Director-General International and Public Affairs (1),

Mrs Hilde Van den Houten, Director-General Finance and Support (3),

Mr Geoffray Robert, Director-General Strategy and Implementation (5).


The Executive Committee is responsible for daily management and representation of this management, as well as for the execution of the decisions of the Board of Directors. The Executive Committee represents the company in negotiations concerning the management contract. The members of the Executive Committee constitute a board chaired by the Chief Executive Officer. The decisions of the Executive Committee are in principle taken by consensus.

In 2020, the Executive Committee met fifty times.

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31ANNUAL REPORT / 7. CORPORATE GOVERNANCE / SKEYES

Board of Auditors

As do all autonomous public companies, skeyes entrusts the verification of its financial position, of its annual accounts and their regularity in the eyes of the law, and the operations shown in the annual accounts, to a Board of Auditors.

The Board of Auditors is composed of two company auditors and two members of the Court of Audit.

Every year the Board of Auditors draws up a detailed written report, which is submitted to the Board of Directors and to the Minister responsible for skeyes.

As at 31 December 2020, the Board of Auditors consisted of:

Ernst & Young BV CVBA, represented by Mr Daniel Wuyts;

Mazars Company Auditors, represented by Mr Philippe Gossart;

Mr Philippe Roland, First Chairman of the Court of Audit;

Mrs Hilde François, Chairwoman of the Dutch speaking chamber of the Court of Audit.

Government Commissioner

As an autonomous public company, skeyes is subject to the supervisory powers of the Minister to whom it reports, in this case the Minister for Mobility responsible for skeyes. This supervision is carried out by the Government Commissioner who ensures the company complies with the law and the management contract. The Government Commissioner reports to the Minister for Mobility.

Until 2 December 2020, Mr Michaël VANLOUBBEECK was the Government commissioner at skeyes. As from 3 December 2020, Mrs Tanja BRUYNSEELS was appoint-ed as Government Commissioner, replacing Mr VAN-LOUBBEECK.


8

Please find below the report on the position and results of the autonomous public company skeyes, with registered office at Square de Meeûs 35, 1000 Brussels, for the financial year 2020 in accordance with the legal provisions.

This report has been drawn up pursuant to Article 27 of the Law of 21 March 1991 reforming certain economic public companies.

The consolidated financial statements of skeyes and its subsidiaries Entry Point North SA and SkeyDrone SA as well as the activity reports of these subsidiaries are included at the end of this management report.

ANNUAL REPORT

Management report of the Board of Directors

The pandemic hit hard in 2020 and had a profound effect on all industries and the organisation of all communities. Some sectors have suffered enormously, and are still suffering, from the drop in their activities. This is notably the case of the airline industry, which, having barely recovered from the consequences of the economic and financial crisis that broke out at the end of 2008, has been experiencing the most serious crisis in its history for over a year now. Never before has air traffic experienced such a dramatic decline. There were only 6.7 million passengers at Brussels Airport in 2020, compared to 26.4 million in 2019, a decrease of 74%. If we consider all Belgian airports, the drop in passenger numbers is of the same magnitude: 9.4 million passengers travelled by plane in 2020 compared to more than 35 million in 2019 (-73%).

Only cargo transport remained stable and even experienced an increase in demand linked to both e-commerce and the import and export of medical equipment necessary for the fight against the pandemic. Thus, Brussels Airport recorded an increase of 2.2% in goods transported, mainly via cargo aircraft, with mixed traffic (passenger + cargo) inevitably decreasing significantly. More than 10 million vaccines against COVID-19 have been exported via Brussels Airport. This underlines the key role of air transport in the fight against the pandemic and the designation of Liege Airport by the World Health Organisation (WHO) as the main hub for medical supplies for Europe. In fact, the increase in cargo traffic mainly concerned Liege Airport, which experienced a 24% rise in 2020, with over 1.1 million tonnes. E-commerce also boosted the figures, with Liege Airport handling more than 548 million parcels compared to 320 million in 2019. At Ostend too, cargo recorded an impressive 112% increase, all things considered, with 52,000 tonnes.

Although the figures for cargo transport have risen sharply, this has had very little impact on air traffic volumes, even for an airport such as Liege Airport, whose traffic is essentially cargo-oriented. Carriers have indeed relied on large aircraft.

The total number of flights at Liege Airport decreased by 1.2% due to the drop in passenger and VFR traffic caused by the health crisis. If only IFR flights (i.e. commercial instrument flights) are taken into account, a slight growth of 3.9% can be observed.

Liege Airport is the only airport where traffic has been maintained and has even seen a slight increase in commercial flights thanks to the increase in cargo flights.The other airports and en-route traffic all recorded significant decreases. En-route traffic managed by the CANAC 2 air traffic control centre handled 278,885 flights in 2020, 53.2% less than in 2019. Flights at Brussels Airport experienced an identical decrease of 59.1% with 95,811 controlled flights. Charleroi airport, which is mainly focused on passenger traffic, unsurprisingly recorded a significant decrease in the number of flights by 44.5% with 45,534 flights. Both Ostend and Antwerp airports experienced similar decreases of 24.6% (19,907 flights) and 28.5% (25,587 flights) respectively.

The number of flights reflects the enormous impact of the crisis on the airline industry. The skeyes activities have been hit hard with an impact on the service units charged for overflight traffic (en-route and approach) and traffic at airports.

En-route service units decreased by 58.7%. For terminal services at airports, service units decreased overall by 44.1%. At Brussels Airport, there was a 55.1% decrease. In Antwerp it was 66.4% and in Charleroi 58%. The decrease is less severe at Ostend, -16.7%, thanks to the increase in cargo traffic. Liege recorded a marked increase of 14.2%, higher than that of IFR traffic because the service units take the weight of the aircraft into account. This confirms the decision of the carriers to use larger aircraft.

8.1Company’s main activities in 2020

34 SKEYES / ANNUAL REPORT / 8. MANAGEMENT REPORT OF THE BOARD OF DIRECTORS

skeyes is aware of the importance of its mission and its contribution to the fight against the pandemic and has, from the beginning of the crisis, taken all the necessary measures to ensure the safety of its staff and the full continuity of its services.

skeyes followed all governmental instructions and even went beyond. Teleworking was organised from mid-March 2020 in a very short timeframe for all staff members to whom it is applicable. For the latter, teleworking has become the norm and permanent monitoring has been introduced to check whether it was applied correctly. A special section of the intranet portal dedicated to the fight against the coronavirus was set up in March 2020 with the usual advice concerning social distancing, wearing masks, correctly washing and disinfecting one’s hands, as well as advice on how to telework efficiently and organise one’s workspace at home, on how to manage one’s stress in the face of the anxiety that can be generated by such a crisis, and also dietary advice to strengthen one’s immunity. About 33 COVID-19 communications were issued in 2020 to inform staff about the latest developments.

As from April, masks were distributed to our staff: 144,500 surgical masks, 31,000 FFP2 masks and 2,000 reusable masks were distributed during the year. At the same time, 70 hydroalcoholic gel dispensers were installed in the company’s buildings, as well as Plexiglas screens, primarily in operational workspaces to minimise the risk of virus transmission. All these actions taken in a very short period of time have contributed to guarantee the continuity of the essential mission of skeyes: to ensure the safety of air traffic.

Internal health measures against the pandemic

Performance targets not yet determined

The Single European Sky legislation introduced performance targets in four areas: safety, capacity, environment and cost-efficiency. These targets are to be met by Member States and air navigation service providers in FABs (Functional Airspace Blocks). FABEC members (Belgium, Luxembourg, Germany, France, the Netherlands and Switzerland), the Belgian State and skeyes, contributed to the common targets defined in the performance plans for the first two reference periods from 2012 to 2014 and from 2015 to 2019 respectively. All skeyes’ performance compared to the targets of these first two reference periods is detailed in the corresponding editions of the skeyes Annual Report and this Management Report of the Board of Directors.

For the third reference period (2020-2024), performance plans are still being drawn up and no targets have yet been set. Performance is therefore not reported against set targets but in comparison with the previous year.

35ANNUAL REPORT / 8. MANAGEMENT REPORT OF THE BOARD OF DIRECTORS / SKEYES

air traffic situation. The proportion of A and B incidents in relation to the number of flights - 0.54 A&B incidents per 100,000 movements - is lower than that recorded in 2019 (0.56 A&B incidents per 100,000 movements). The objective of not exceeding one category A and B incident per 100,000 controlled movements was therefore again largely achieved in 2020.

The safety performance in 2020 is still among the best, especially if you look at the development and the progress made over the last two decades. In 2000, skeyes still recorded no less than 22 A and B incidents. This positive development is the result of the daily work of the air traffic controllers and the entire skeyes staff, whose top priority is safety. More structurally, the Safety Management System (SMS) deployed in all operational departments of the company as well as the open and widespread reporting culture and the Just Culture concept are bearing fruit: they provide a proactive, reactive, systematic and formalised approach to safety and offer a set of processes to continuously improve, evaluate and monitor safety.

The 2020 safety performance also highlights the effectiveness of the company’s health crisis management and the maintenance of its priority mission at the highest level.

Safety: skeyes’ top priority

The decline in air traffic from the second quarter of 2020 onwards has naturally had a strong influence on the number of Safety Related Occurrences (SROs).

Our air traffic controllers reported 933 SROs in 2020. Compared to the 1,589 reported incidents in 2019, this represents a 41.4% decrease. 126 reports were also received from airlines, airports, other air navigation service providers and the BCAA.

After analysis of these incident reports, the total number of SROs for 2020 amounts to 838 (-39% compared to 2019). In the vast majority of these incidents, skeyes bears no responsibility. In only 34 of these cases was the involvement of skeyes established, which is 60.9% less than in 2019.

In terms of the severity of the 34 incidents involving skeyes, 27 are of category E and are therefore considered to have no impact on the safety level, 7 are of category C (significant) and only 3 incidents are of category B (major). There were no incidents of category A, the most severe, in 2020. This is the third year in the company’s history that no incidents in this category have been recorded. After the absolute record of 2016 (0 A and B incidents) and the performance of 2019 (0 A and 6 B), 2020 is a year to remember in terms of safety despite the exceptional

SRO A & SRO B - Safety Related Occurences

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VFR traffic. These incidents are linked to the volume of traffic and decreased by 50.5% in 2020 (52 events in 2020 against 105 in 2019). These intrusions are second only to laser pointer incidents in terms of frequency. It should be noted that in 2020, none of these intrusions resulted in a breach of the minimum safety separations between aircraft.

The most significant decrease in the number of safety-related events, all occurrences combined, concerns precisely these breaches of the minimum separation between aircraft. While there were 44 such incidents in 2019, only 10 were reported in 2020, i.e. a reduction of 77.3%. The involvement rate of skeyes has also decreased as it bears responsibility for 7 of these 10 incidents (70%) compared to 80% in 2019.

Another type of incident that directly affects the safety performance of skeyes is runway incursions. In 2020, 27 runway incursions were reported, compared to 26 the previous year, a slight increase of 3.8%. Despite this additional occurrence compared to 2019, the involvement of skeyes was only confirmed for 6 of these incursions (i.e. 22% of them) compared to 7 in 2019 (27%).

Finally, events related to drone flights in unauthorised areas concerned 8 incident reports, all reported by pilots, mainly in the CTRs of Brussels and Antwerp airports.

Most frequent incident types

While the reduction in traffic as a result of the health crisis has had an impact on the number of incidents, it has also had an influence on the most frequently reported types of incidents.

The top three places in the ranking of most reported events are held by incidents that are completely unrelated to the skeyes mission, but which are required by European legislation to be reported: interference with wildlife tops the list, followed by ELT (Emergency Locator Transmitter) transmissions and technical problems with aircraft reported by pilots.

In fourth place, there was a 45.4% increase in call sign confusion compared to 2019 (64 events compared to 44). This increase is closely monitored by the skeyes Safety Management Unit (SMU) and could be partly due to the high traffic volume at Liege Airport due to the health crisis.

In fifth place were incidents of pilots being blinded by laser pointers (56 events compared with 79 in 2019, i.e. -29.1%). The coordinated efforts of skeyes, the BCAA and the police are bearing fruit and incidents of this type continue to fall (a peak was reached in 2012 with 207 incidents involving the use of a laser pointer).

Among the events for which skeyes can be held liable are airspace infringements, which are mainly caused by


Punctuality: performance linked to traffic volume

Punctuality depends on many factors and stakeholders in the aviation chain that links the point of departure of an aircraft, from its flight plan management, to its arrival at the destination airport.

The involvement of air navigation service providers in the en-route punctuality of flights reflects their ability to meet traffic demand without resorting to regulations that will create delay further up the chain.

At airports, the exchange of information between all links in the chain is crucial to ensure timely landings and take-offs. As there are too many factors involved in the punctuality of an aircraft’s departure, the performance of air navigation service providers in terms of airport delays only concerns arrivals.

Air navigation service providers can influence some factors affecting punctuality. These factors are grouped under the acronym CRSTMP (C-Capacity, R-Routing, S-Staffing, T-Equipment, M-Airspace management, P-Special events). Other factors - such as the weather - are beyond our control. A distinction is therefore made between all-cause delay and delay due to CRSTMP causes.

Overall, skeyes managed 99.3% of flights on time in 2020.

A strong and applied Just Culture

In response to skeyes’ request to establish a legal framework for the principles of Just Culture, a Royal Decree was published on 26 August 2020.

skeyes has always considered Just Culture as a fundamental element for a formalised, proactive and reactive management and a solid foundation for a safety culture within the company. A holistic view of safety that has always guided skeyes’ actions in incident management, the search for causes, the ‘why?’ instead of the ‘who?’, which allows a thorough understanding of incidents and the implementation of corrective and preventive measures in an atmosphere where both acceptable and unacceptable behaviour are clearly defined.

This approach was reflected in the incident investigations conducted by skeyes in 2020. Out of 431 investigations carried out, 6 warnings and 35 safety recommendations were issued.

Despite the significant decrease in air traffic volume in 2020, the safety culture was largely maintained. The Just Culture principles continued to foster an environment of trust in which safety occurrence reporting is the norm. While the absolute number of incident reports decreased due to the decrease in traffic (933 compared to 1589, or -41.4%), the number of reports per 100,000 movements increased from 148 in 2019 to 167 in 2020 showing once again an increase in safety culture and reporting.


› En-route punctuality

En-route punctuality is related to traffic volume and 2020 is a particular year in this respect. The performance indicator for en-route punctuality is the average en-route ATFM delay per flight. This average delay for all causes was limited to 0.06 minutes, or 3.6 seconds, per flight in the airspace managed by skeyes (these delays were generated before the decrease in traffic due to the health crisis). If only CRSTMP causes are considered, which are controlled by skeyes, the average en-route delay per flight is also 0.06 minutes.

skeyes’ performance in terms of en-route punctuality for CRSTMP causes is better than the FABEC average of 0.14 minutes, or 8.4 seconds per flight.

› Punctuality at the airports

Only Brussels Airport recorded delays in arrivals for CRSTMP causes of 0.03 minutes, or 1.8 seconds, per flight in 2020.

If other factors are taken into account, such as the weather, which often contributes significantly to the overall delay of an airport, Brussels Airport records an average delay of 0.37 minutes per arrival, i.e. 22.2 seconds, and Liege Airport 0.15 minutes per arrival, i.e. 9 seconds.

The performance at Liege Airport is noteworthy given that it was achieved in a context of increased traffic and working conditions made more difficult by the health crisis.

Environment: green landings

CDO (Continuous Descent Operation) - also called green landing - is an operation in which the aircraft descends continuously, where possible with minimum engine power, depending on the flight characteristics and the air traffic situation. This reduces noise, fuel consumption and greenhouse gas emissions.

In 2020, 78% of the landings at Brussels Airport were managed using a CDO procedure. This is an increase of 0.9% compared to 2019.

At Charleroi airport, 51.3% of landings followed a CDO procedure, a decrease of 11.6%.

Liege Airport totalled 71.4% green landings, an increase of 3.9%.

In addition to green landings, skeyes is constantly improving its procedures and pursuing projects to improve the structure of Belgian airspace and its management, including with the military. This joint management will enable optimal use of airspace for both civil and military purposes.

Another way in which skeyes contributes to limiting the impact of air traffic on environment is by facilitating the coexistence of wind power generation and air traffic safety. skeyes has contributed to the permits for 80 new wind turbines in 2020.

In addition, skeyes has optimised its calculation method in 2020. This will double the number of wind turbines that could be built while maintaining air traffic safety.


Continue to invest to support innovation, collaboration and air traffic recovery

While the health crisis that disrupted 2020 caused many sectors of economic activity to slow down or even come to a halt, aviation being one of them, skeyes continued to think about the future.

Our lives will probably never be the same again, but the activities of our customers, who are the key players in an important economic fabric for our society, will very quickly resume. skeyes not only wants to be ready to support this recovery, but also wants to do better than before by developing new services, innovating, and relying on partnerships and collaborations that will enable it to carry out its mission even more efficiently.

skeyes has continued to invest in people first and foremost. The in-house skills of its employees, their well-being and their motivation represent its most precious capital.skeyes has reduced the number of new hires in 2020 compared to what was planned. 61 new employees have joined the company in 2020.

To support the operational teams and prepare for the future, a recruitment exam was organised in the first half of 2020. 1,070 candidates were admitted to the tests with exceptional health measures to ensure safety for all.

Following the recruitment exam, 15 air traffic controller candidates were able to start their training in 2020. 11 new air traffic controllers successfully completed their two-year training and joined the operational teams.

As of 31 December 2020, the company had 903 employees (647 men and 256 women) compared to 891 in 2019. They represent 887.38 full-time equivalents (FTE).

While skeyes has taken special measures to minimise the risk of transmission of the virus, in 2020 it also continued to place particular emphasis on the well-being and health of its employees, as it always has.

It has expanded its range of staff services under the term skeyes benefits. In June, it launched the Employee Assistance Program, a support service that can offer psychological, emotional, practical and mental support to employees and their families.

Investments were also made in skeyes’ collaboration with the Belgian military. The integration of the two air traffic controls continued in 2020 with the installation of a brand new workstation for the control centre supervisors,


both civilian and military. The new workstation was put into operation on 8 June 2020 after a real tour de force to continue operations in a context made even more difficult by the health measures.

Preparations for a closer collaboration between civil and military air traffic control services at the same site have been initiated so that operations can be better coordinated in the future. At that moment, as soon as the military airspace becomes available, other aircraft can use it again. This will provide more direct routes for civil air traffic, which should lead to environmental benefits as well as greater efficiency in skeyes’ air traffic control and a better positioning of the company in the increasingly competitive air traffic control sector.

The pre-tactical organisation of air traffic control and traffic flows is the role of the Airspace Management Cell (AMC), the operation of which was optimised in 2020 through cooperation between skeyes, the Belgian Defence and MUAC (Maastricht Upper Area Control Centre).

Civil-military integration also continues with the SAS3 study, which aims to provide a common air traffic control

system for skeyes, the Belgian Defence and Eurocontrol MUAC (the three air navigation service providers active in Belgian airspace). Since December 2019, the Belgian Defence uses the air traffic control system developed by MUAC.

skeyes has also been actively preparing for the future mainly on two fronts: drones and digital towers.

With the entry into force on 31/12/2020 of a new Commission Implementing Regulation (EU) 2019/947 on the rules and procedures for the operation of unmanned aircraft, establishing a new framework for the use of drones in different types of airspace, including lower airspace, skeyes has been preparing for this change during 2020 by developing a concept of operations for drone management by skeyes’ ATS (Air Traffic Services) units.

A new tool (DSA - Drone Service Application) has been put into operation by skeyes. It will have two main objectives: to lighten the workload of the skeyes SPACC and ATS units, and to provide a visualisation and planning tool for tower air traffic control and Aerodrome Flight


Cost-effiency

In 2019 a draft performance plan was submitted for the third reference period (2020-2024). As already widely documented in the comments on the turnover and the result of the financial year, the procedure and the framework of the performance and charging scheme have been revised following the Covid crisis by the Commission Implementing Regulation EU 2020/1627 of 3 November 2020 on exceptional measures for the third reference period (2020-2024) of the single European sky performance and charging scheme due to the COVID-19 pandemic.

By 1 October 2021 Member States must prepare and submit to the Commission a reviewed performance plan, which includes revised performance targets that will contribute to the amended EU-wide targets. The Commission will adopt the updated EU-wide targets for RP3 by 1 May 2021. These targets will apply retroactively from the start of the reference period, i.e. 2020.

Information Service units. This tool will probably be the first step towards the implementation of U-space and the emergence of U-space service providers (USSP), to be used by drone operators for flight authorisations, strategic and tactical organisation, tracking, etc. The development of a U-space regulation is already underway within the European Commission and EASA (European Aviation Safety Agency) and its implementation is expected in the coming years.

Another major project for the future is the digital towers. In 2020, skeyes has decided to gradually equip all Belgian airports with digital towers. A public tender has been launched and contacts have been established with the regional authorities to define the ins and outs of this strategic collaboration. This innovative technology will take skeyes and the participating airports towards the digitalisation of air traffic control.

A strategic programme has been set up in 2020 to coordinate this ambitious technological but also human change.

skeyes has also been actively involved in other international collaborative projects to improve the efficiency of airspace management, such as the Sector 3 project which was finalised in 2020 and the operational objective of which was to reduce the high workload in the current sectorisation of Amsterdam ACC airspace, within Sector 3.

In the longer term, skeyes is also involved in the projects of the SESAR programme, the technological pillar of the Single European Sky, which aims to improve airspace management by modernising and harmonising Air Traffic Management technologies and systems. In 2020, skeyes was involved in the Clean Sky project, which aims to develop technologies to reduce the environmental impact of aviation, and in the SAFIR-med project, which started in December 2020 and concerns medical transport using drones.


Equity decreased by EUR 11.9 million, i.e. the amount of the 2020 loss.

The amount of provisions raised slightly in 2020 (+EUR 0.5 million), mainly due to the evolution of the provision for major building repair and maintenance works.

The debts increased on the one hand due to a rise in debts to suppliers, mainly because the contribution to the Eurocontrol operating budget (EUR 16.5 million) was only paid after the closing date and on the other hand to cope with the consequences of the coronavirus crisis, skeyes called on several external sources of funding for a net amount/balance of EUR 76.3 million as of 31 december 2020. So skeyes contracted loans from Eurocontrol as part of a financial support program for ANSPs and States to cover the lack of liquidity resulting from deferral of payments of ‘en route’ charges by airlines (EUR 31.3 million balance at 31/12/20), and the Belgian State (EUR 20 million). The Belgian State has also granted an endowment of EUR 25 million to skeyes in order to ensure its operational and financial sustainability. Pending a final allocation, this amount has been carried over to the year 2021 via the accruals and deferred income.

Finally, the Federal Holding and Investment Company (SFPI-FPIM) granted a loan of EUR 2.5 million as part of the establishment of SkeyDrone.

LIABILITIES (in thousands of euros) 31/12/2019 31/12/2020 CHANGE

Equity 230,729 218,871 -5,1%

Provisions 19,941 20,411 2.4%

Debts 46,584 140,226 201.0%

Total liabilities 297,254 379,509 27.7%

Balance sheet

The amount of fixed assets is lower than at the end of 2019. This slight decrease is explained by the fact that the increase in fixed assets due to the amount of investments (EUR 7.1 million) and the participation of skeyes in its new subsidiary SkeyDrone (EUR 5.6 million) was more than offset by the amount of depreciation costs (EUR 14.4 million) recorded in 2020.

Current assets grew significantly, mainly due to a rise in trade account receivables. Indeed, this item contains in particular the accruals and deferred income, in which the corrective mechanisms for the en-route and terminal activities have been included during the period 2016-2020 (EUR 103.3 million; an increase of EUR 88.4 million compared to the end of 2019).

This corrective mechanism relates on the one hand to the costs of support services provided by the Eurocontrol headquarters to MUAC and the pensions of former MUAC employees and, on the other hand, to the part of the costs incurred by skeyes which could not be invoiced to airlines in 2020 due to the decline in operational activities following the Covid-19 crisis. These costs may be recovered via the mechanism during the period 2023-2027 - and not in their entirety in N+2 - (cf. annex and EU regulation 2020/1627 of 3 november 2020) in order to support the air transport sector/airlines.

ASSETS (in thousands of euros) 31/12/2019 31/12/2020 CHANGE

Fixed assets 111,709 110,001 -1.5%

Current assets 185,545 269,508 45.3%

Total assets 297,254 379,509 27.7%

8.2Financial data for the financial year 2020


Profit and loss account

In 2020, skeyes recorded a loss of EUR 11.9 million vs a profit of EUR 1.5 million in 2019.

In 2020 the coronavirus crisis caused a drop in turnover (-4.6%) due to the sharp decrease in both ‘en route’ (-58.7% of service units compared to 2019) and ‘terminal’ (-44.1% of service units compared to 2019) operational activities. Consequently, the fall in air traffic has led to a sharp decrease in the share invoiced in 2020 while the balance (i.e. the difference between the activities already invoiced and the costs incurred by skeyes) will only be invoiced via the corrective mechanism during the period 2023-2027 (see annex and regulation EU 2020/1627 of 3 november 2020).

At the closure of the 2020 accounts and in accordance with the precautionary principle, a new European objective was anticipated for the air traffic controllers/ANSPs which should be set by 1 May 2021 at the latest. As a consequence, in 2020 skeyes relied on the March 2021 proposals issued by the Performance Review Body (PRB) concerning the costs for the years 2020 and 2021. The PRB

PROFIT AND LOSS ACCOUNT (in thousands of euros) 31/12/2019 31/12/2020

Turnover 245,234 233,951

Other operating income 3,484 3,724

Non-recurring operating income 832 15

Operating income 249,549 237,691

Services and other goods 88,225 89,319

Remuneration, social security contributions and pensions 144,471 141,400

Amortisation 11,609 14,398

Write-downs and provisions 2,301 2,132

Other operating expenses 1,440 1,769

Non-recurring operating expenses 9 10

Operating expenses 248,055 249,028

Operating result 1,495 -11,337

Financial result 20 -522

Provision for taxes -24 0

Financial year profit 1,491 -11,858

proposed that in 2020 and 2021, only 90% of the actual costs incurred by the ANSPs in 2019 could be charged to users.

In the 2020 turnover, the cost base for the ‘en route’ and ‘terminal’ activities has therefore been limited to 90% of the actual costs for 2019.

On the cost side, skeyes has made very significant proactive efforts to reduce costs, while several exceptional measures have been implemented since 18 March 2020 to preserve staff health and ensure business continuity.The item ‘Services and other goods’ boosted (+EUR 1.1 million), mainly due to an increase (+EUR 3.5 million) in the contribution to the operating budget of MUAC (Eurocontrol) offset by a decrease in skeyes overheads (-EUR 2.4 million) which is mainly explained by a lower use of external support services.

After the downward trend in the staffing until 2015, the number of FTEs grew again in 2020 up to 883.1.


As in previous years, recruitment exams were held in 2020 to hire air traffic controllers, enabling 15 candidate air traf-fic controllers to begin their training in order to ensure continuity in the future.

Staff costs diminished due on the one hand to the taking of historical leave in execution of the concluded collective agreement ‘Covid-19 on leave, relating to individual leave balances and leave carryover’, and on the other hand to the fall in other salary costs such as premiums as well as professional training costs (following inter alia the tempo-rary suspension of training for air traffic controllers and ATSEP at EPNB as part of measures related to Covid-19).

Finally, there was a rise in depreciation costs of EUR 2.8 million on the one hand following a change in the depre-ciation percentages per type of investment, enabling to better align the depreciation period with the potential lifetime of the investments, and on the other hand due to the depreciation on new investments which became operational in 2020.

APPROPRIATION OF THE RESULT 31/12/2020

2020 loss to be appropriated -11,858

Appropriation of the 2020 result

The loss of the financial year (EUR 11.9 million) is carried forward.

(in thousands of euros)

At the time of writing, the coronavirus crisis continues to rage. Its impact on the aviation sector is unprecedented, and it is hitting airlines, airports and air navigation service providers hard.

Unlike other players in the airline industry, skeyes cannot interrupt the service it provides and must continue to perform its public service missions as stipulated in the law of March 1991, in its management contract with the Belgian State and in the 1989 Cooperation Agreement between the Belgian State acting on behalf of the Régie des Voies aériennes (skeyes) and the Regions, and in accordance with the international provisions incumbent on the Belgian State under the Chicago Convention. skeyes has to guarantee a minimum service at all times, while its costs are hardly compressible, especially in view of the employees’ status.

Events occuring after the balance sheet date

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As part of the urgent measures taken by the federal government to limit the spread of the COVID-19 coronavirus (including the Ministerial Decrees of 18 and 23 March 2020), both air navigation, air traffic control and meteorological services have been defined as a critical sector and as an essential service. Therefore, skeyes continues to provide its operational services.

Since 85% of the services provided by skeyes are charged to airlines, skeyes’ income is highly dependent on air traffic. Due to the sudden and drastic decrease in air traffic, skeyes was faced with a dramatic decrease in its billings to airlines; without precautionary measures, this would have led to a major liquidity problem.

In a letter dated 28 April 2020, the competent Minister reiterated his commitment to skeyes and argued that maintaining the operational stability and safety as well as the financial health of skeyes was of crucial importance for the Belgian economy. In his letter, he stated that in these particularly difficult and exceptional times, the government will assume its responsibilities, both in the short term for the liquidity challenges and for the commensurate structural measures that will have to be taken to ensure a sound financial and social future for skeyes.

In 2020, a number of concrete measures have already been taken so that skeyes can cope with the situation

and limit the financial impact somewhat in 2020 (Royal Decree of 31 July 2020 approving the second amendment to the third management contract between the State and skeyes). On the one hand, the traffic risk sharing mechanism supported by the State for terminal activities was applied in advance and collected for the year 2020. On the other hand, the State granted an endowment of EUR 45 million, of which EUR 20 million in the form of an interest-free loan.

As the situation will remain difficult in 2021, the management bodies of skeyes will continue to monitor the situation and regularly assess the effects and possible measures for 2021 in close consultation with the Minister responsible.

The system of early application of the traffic risk sharing mechanism supported by the State was also approved for the year 2021 (Royal Decree of 28 December 2020 approving the third amendment to the third management contract between the State and skeyes).

Furthermore, there is an agreement in principle with the supervisory minister on skeyes’ request for additional financial support in the form of a loan of EUR 110 million in order to bridge the liquidity gap in 2021.


8.3Remuneration of members of the management bodies

Article 17 §4 of the Law of 21 March 1991 stipulates that the Remuneration Committee shall prepare an annual report on the remuneration of the members of the management bodies, which shall be included in the management report.

The Royal Decree of 2 October 2013 appointed Mr Johan Decuyper as Chief Executive Officer of skeyes from 2 October 2013 for a period of six years. Subsequently, the Royal Decree of 18 November 2013 appointed the Chairman and members of the Board of Directors of skeyes for a period of six years. The terms of office of the directors technically expired on 17 November 2019. As the government had not made any new appointment on that date, the terms of office were automatically extended until the new directors were appointed, in accordance with the principle of continuity of public services. This was confirmed by a letter from the minister dated 16 September 2019.

The remuneration received by the members of the Board of Directors on account of their directorship is set by the King pursuant to Article 21 §2 of the Law of 21 March 1991.Within the Board of Directors established since 22 November 2013, the directors (with the exception of the Chief Executive Officer) and the Chairman receive, on the basis of the Royal Decree of 18 November 2013, a gross annual remuneration of EUR 11,155.20 and EUR 52,057.64 respectively, linked to the pivotal index 138.01.

The directors also receive an attendance fee for their participation in the specialised committees created within the Board of Directors (Audit Committee, Remuneration Committee, Strategy Committee) on the basis of the Royal Decree of 3 May 1999. This attendance fee amounts to EUR 371.84, is not index-linked and the annual total may not exceed 1/3 of the annual basic remuneration received as a director.

For the financial year 2020, the gross remuneration (in EUR) received by the members of the Board of Directors was as follows:

The members of the Board of Directors

DIRECTORS Brut Attendance token TOTAL

LORAND Renaud (Chairman) 75,465.30 7,436.80 82,902.10

BORGINON Fons 16,171.08 3,718.40 19,889.48

de BRIEY Laurent 16,171.08 3,718.40 19,889.48

DUFFY Gerald 16,171.08 1,859.20 18,030.28

LAVEYNE Luc 16,171.08 2,602.88 18,773.96

LUDMER Julie 16,171.08 371.84 16,542.92

VAN BEVER Hugo 16,171.08 2,602.88 18,773.96

Van der AUWERA Liesbeth 16,171.08 2,974.72 19,145.80

STAINIER Sandra 16,171.08 3,718.40 19,889.48

204,833.94 29,003.52 233,837.46


The attendance rate at meetings of the Board of Directors was 90% (including the Chief Executive Officer). In 2020, outside of normal meetings, a significantly higher number of meetings were held to monitor the effects of the COVID-19 pandemic.

In 2020, the Board of Directors met 17 times. Messrs Laveyne and de Briey attended 16 and 14 meetings respectively. Mr Duffy and Ms Van der Auwera attended 12 and 9 meetings respectively. Messrs Lorand, Borginon and Van Bever and Mmes Ludmer and Stainier attended all meetings. Of the directors on the Audit Committee, Ms Stainier and Mr de Briey attended 12 of the 13 meetings held in 2020 and Ms Van der Auwera attended 8 meetings. Mr Lorand and Mr Borginon attended all meetings. Of the directors on the Remuneration Committee, Mr Duffy attended 5 of the 6 meetings held in 2020. The other members attended all 6 meetings. In 2020, the Strategy Committee met once (in full).

In accordance with Article 17 §4 of the Law of 21 March 1991, the remuneration and benefits granted to the Chief Executive Officer and the members of the Executive Committee are decided by the Board of Directors at the proposal of the Remuneration Committee.

When each member of the Executive Committee took office, the fixed portion of this remuneration was the subject of a specific agreement in accordance with Article 21 of the Law of 21 March 1991. The Remuneration Committee set the amount and composition of this remuneration at that time and separately based each case on a benchmarking study relating to comparable levels of responsibility.

When setting the Chief Executive Officer’s remuneration at the end of 2013, the relevant guidelines laid down by the Government were taken into account. Based on these guidelines, and at the proposal of the Remuneration Committee, the Board of Directors set out a system of remuneration in the CEO’s specific agreement providing for the granting of a fixed gross annual salary, a variable gross salary and a certain number of additional benefits.

The Chief Executive Officer does not receive any specific remuneration in his capacity as a member of the Board of Directors.

The Executive Committee


› Variable remuneration for services provided in 2019

In 2020, the members of the Executive Committee received variable remuneration for services provided in 2019.

The variable remuneration is set at a maximum of 30% of the gross annual salary for the Chief Executive Officer and a maximum of EUR 40,000 gross per year for the other members of the Executive Committee, adapted annually to the health index. The evaluation is based, for 30%, on the following common criteria: the number of category A and B accidents and incidents (10%) and the effectiveness of Safety Management (20%) and for the remaining 70% on the achievement of individual objectives set in advance by the CEO.

› Additional benefits in 2020

In 2020, the Chief Executive Officer and the other members of the Executive Committee received a number of additional benefits, such as a company car and hospitalisation insurance, as provided for in their individual contracts. The contractual members of the Executive Committee also benefited from ‘income protection insurance’ and group insurance.

For the 2020 financial year, the fixed salary, allowances and other benefits (in EUR) received by members of the Executive Committee were as follows:

Mr Vanloubbeeck was appointed as the Government Commissioner on 18 July 2016. He was replaced by Ms Bruynseels on 3 December 2020. They received a gross remuneration of EUR 19,655.12 and EUR 1,708.20 respectively in 2020.

The Government Commissioner

Fixed salary (*) Variable remuneration and other benefits

TOTAL GROSS REMUNERATION

Chief Executive Officer 226,075.43 82,468.91 308,544.34

Director-Generals 1,004,267.47 200,404.50 1,204,671.97

TOTAL 1,230,342.90 282,873.41 1,513,216.31

(*) Fixed salary = salary + vacation pay + year-end bonus (depending on the start and end dates of the mandate)


8.4Consolidated Annual Financial Statements 2020

Scope of consolidation

On 27 February 2018, skeyes and Entry Point North Sweden created the joint venture “Entry Point North Belgium (EPNB)” to provide training services and administrative services in Belgium to air traffic controllers. Both parties acquired 50% of the shares.

SkeyDrone, a wholly-owned subsidiary of skeyes, was created on 10 February 2020.

2020 is the first year in which consolidated annual accounts were prepared. For the 2018 and 2019 financial

Consolidating company skeyes skeyes’ share

Consolidated companiesEntry Point North Belgium SA 50%

SkeyDrone SA 100%

years, it was considered that the importance of these subsidiaries was negligible and that their inclusion would not have had a significant impact on the valuation of the consolidated assets, the consolidated financial position or the consolidated income.

The consolidated annual accounts for the 2020 financial year concern the full consolidation of the annual accounts of the autonomous public company skeyes with those of its subsidiary SkeyDrone SA and proportional consolidation with Entry Point North Belgium SA.

Activity report of the subsidiary Entry Point North Belgium

The 2020 financial year includes 12 months of operation.

During 2020, EPNB was strongly impacted by the COVID-19 crisis. The capability to provide on-site training services in the training centre was limited in accordance with national restrictions and activities were adapted to health protection requirements. Government restrictions led to the closure of the training facility for at least eight weeks.

During the pandemic, EPNB placed greater emphasis on the remote provision of training services and expanded its training portfolio by offering virtual courses in response to distancing requirements.

In 2020, skeyes continued to be EPNB’s strategic partner and main customer. Revenue with other external customers increased slightly in the same year.

Overall, EPNB organised more than 160 courses with a total of over 1,500 participants. In the range of training services offered, ATC Initial & Unit Training accounted for the largest share of the total volume of EPNB sales.


Activity report of the SkeyDrone subsidiary

The 2020 financial year consisted of 11 months of activity, following the creation of the Company on 7 February 2020 (filing of the incorporation deed on 10 February 2020).

Following the start of the COVID-19 crisis in Belgium in March 2020, the Company’s Board of Directors revised the business plan. The aim of this revision was to establish a suitable budget framework for the Company in 2020. To this end, consideration was given, on the one hand, to the financial situation of the parent company and the sole shareholder skeyes, and in particular to the measures taken by the parent company, including the hiring freeze. On the other hand, the Company’s Board of Directors believed that a minimum level of investment and working capital was needed to support the Company’s initial start-up and growth, especially as the drone market (in terms of both supply and demand) appeared to be less affected by

the COVID-19 crisis, and external legislative and regulatory developments appeared to be subject to only a limited delay.

During the pandemic, the Company focused on developing and marketing its first software platform (drone flight authorisation software) as well as preparing and entering into strategic and commercial partnerships with technology companies (DroneMatrix, Unifly and Senhive) and with a telecom operator (Proximus). In addition, the Company secured its participation in two subsidised European research and development projects in the area of U-space and Urban Air Mobility. In total, four sales contracts were concluded in 2020 for the provision of software and consultancy services (in the area of drone detection / protection against drones).

Financial data for the 2020 financial year

Balance sheet and profit and loss account

PROFIT AND LOSS ACCOUNT (in thousands of euros) 2020

Turnover 231,928

Other operating income 3,130

Non-recurring operating income 15

Operating income 235,073

Services and miscellaneous goods 90,522

Remuneration, social security contributions and pensions 138,070

Amortisation 14,421

Write-downs and provisions 2,132

Other operating expenses 1,770

Non-recurring operating expenses 10

Operating expenses 246,924

Operating result -11.851

Financial result -523

Income tax 0.8

Consolidated loss -12,374


The consolidated accounts closed with a loss of EUR 12.4 million, of which EUR -11.9 million for the parent company, skeyes, EUR -332 k for the subsidiary SkeyDrone (100%) and EUR -184 k for EPNB (50%).

skeyes accounts for 98% of both consolidated operating income and consolidated operating expenses.

LIABILITIES

Equity 218,761

Provisions 20,411

Debts 139,796

Total liabilities 378,968

ASSETS

Fixed assets 104,469

Current assets 274,499

Total assets 378,968

The total consolidated balance sheet amounts to EUR 379 million. Also for the balance sheet, skeyes accounts for more than 97% of the various items in the consolidated balance sheet.

For discussion of the balance sheet and of the income statement of the parent company and subsidiaries, please refer to the statutory annual accounts and the annual report of the respective companies.

Events after the balance sheet date

The impact of the coronavirus crisis is addressed in skeyes’ annual report.


9ANNUAL REPORT

Report of the Board of Auditors

Report of the Joint Auditors of the autonomous public company skeyes for the year ended 31 December, 2020

In accordance with the articles of association of the com-pany and the provisions of the law, and more particularly, in accordance with Section 25 of the law of 21 March 1991 concerning the reform of certain economic public com-panies (hereinafter referred to as “the law of 21 March, 1991”) which makes reference to Sections 3:74 and 3:75 of the Code of companies and associations, the Board of Auditors hereby submits its report to you under our mandate as statutory auditor of skeyes (the “autonomous public company”). This report includes our opinion on the balance sheet as at 31 December 2020, the income statement for the year ended 31 December 2020 and the disclosures (all elements together the “Annual Accounts”) and includes as well our report on other legal and regu-latory requirements. These reports are considered as one and are inseparable.

Unqualified opinion

We have audited the Annual Accounts of skeyes, that comprise of the balance sheet on December 31, 2020, as well as the income statement of the year and the disclosures, which show a balance sheet total of € 379.508.562,18 and of which the income statement shows a loss for the year of € 11.858.244,03.

In our opinion, the Annual Accounts give a true and fair view of the autonomous public company’s net equity and financial position as at 31 December 2020, and of its results for the year then ended, prepared in accordance with the financial reporting framework applicable in Belgium.

Basis for the unqualified opinion

We conducted our audit in accordance with International Standards on Auditing (“ISAs”). Our responsibilities under those standards are further described in the “Our respon-sibilities for the audit of the Annual Accounts” section of our report.

We have complied with all ethical requirements that are relevant to our audit of the Annual Accounts in Belgium, including those with respect to independence.

We have obtained from the Board of Directors and the officials of the autonomous public company the explana-

Report on the audit of the Annual Accounts

The members of the Institute of Auditors have been ap-pointed by the Dutch business court in Brussels. This mandate expires with the deliberation of the Annual Ac-counts for the year ending 31 December 2022. They per-formed the statutory audit of the Annual Accounts of the Company during one year.

Per Section 25 §3 of the law of 21 March 1991, two members of the Joint Auditors have been appointed by the sharehol-ders’ meeting of the Court of Audit of respectively 2 Sep-tember 2015 and 5 April 2017.

[The Dutch and French versions of the Report and the 2020 Annual Accounts have been officially approved. The English version is not signed and for information purpose only]

tions and information necessary for the performance our audit and we believe that the audit evidence we have ob-tained is sufficient and appropriate to provide a basis for our opinion.

Emphasis of certain matters

Without qualifying our opinion, we draw attention to Note VOL- kap 6.20 to the Annual Accounts in which the uncertainties are described with respect to the revenue and result of the current period given that the revised European Union-wide targets for the third reference period (2020-2024) have not been finalized yet. The outcome of the matter explained above could have a significant impact on the financial position and results of the autonomous public company.

54 SKEYES / ANNUAL REPORT / 9. REPORT OF THE BOARD OF AUDITORS

Responsibilities of the Board of Directors for the preparation of the Annual Accounts

The Board of Directors is responsible for the preparation of the Annual Accounts that give a true and fair view in accordance with the financial reporting framework applicable in Belgium and for such internal controls relevant to the preparation of the Annual Accounts that are free from material misstatement, whether due to fraud or error.

As part of the preparation of the Annual Accounts, the Board of Directors is responsible for assessing the autonomous public company’s ability to continue as a going concern, and provide, if applicable, information on matters impacting going concern. The Board of Directors should prepare the financial statements using the going concern basis of accounting, unless the Board of Directors either intends to liquidate the autonomous public company or to cease business operations, or has no realistic alternative but to do so.

Our responsibilities for the audit of the Annual Accounts

Our objectives are to obtain reasonable assurance whether the Annual Accounts are free from material misstatement, whether due to fraud or error, and to express an opinion on these Annual Accounts based on our audit. Reasonable assurance is a high level of assurance, but not a guarantee that an audit conducted in accordance with the ISAs will always detect a material misstatement when it exists. Misstatements can arise from fraud or error and considered material if, individually or in the aggregate, they could reasonably be expected to influence the economic decisions of users taken on the basis of these Annual Accounts.

In performing our audit, we comply with the legal, regulatory and normative framework that applies to the audit of the Financial Statements in Belgium. However, a statutory audit does not provide assurance about the future viability of the Company and the Group, nor about the efficiency or effectiveness with which the board of directors has taken or will undertake the Company’s and the Group’s business operations. Our responsibilities with regards to the going concern assumption used by the board of directors are described below.

As part of an audit in accordance with ISAs, we exercise professional judgment and we maintain professional skepticism throughout the audit. We also perform the following tasks:

Identification and assessment of the risks of material misstatement of the Annual Accounts, whether due to fraud or error, the planning and execution of audit procedures to respond to these risks and obtain audit evidence which is sufficient and appropriate to provide a basis for our opinion. The risk of not detecting material misstatements resulting from fraud is higher than when such misstatements result from errors, since fraud may involve collusion, forgery, intentional omissions, misrepresentations, or the override of internal control;

Obtaining insight in the system of internal controls that are relevant for the audit and with the objective to design audit procedures that are appropriate in the circumstances, but not for the purpose of expressing an opinion on the effectiveness of the autonomous public company’s internal control;

Evaluating the selected and applied accounting policies, and evaluating the reasonability of the accounting estimates and related disclosures made by the Board of Directors as well as the underlying information given by the Board of Directors;

Conclude on the appropriateness of the Board of Director’s use of the going-concern basis of accounting, and based on the audit evidence obtained, whether or not a material uncertainty exists related to events or conditions that may cast significant doubt on the autonomous public company’s ability to continue as a going concern. If we conclude that a material uncertainty exists, we are required to draw attention in our auditor’s report to the related disclosures in the Annual Accounts or, if such disclosures are inadequate, to modify our opinion. Our conclusions are based on audit evidence obtained up to the date of the auditor’s report. However, future events or conditions may cause the autonomous public company to cease to continue as a going-concern;

Evaluating the overall presentation, structure and content of the Annual Accounts, and evaluating whether the Annual Accounts reflect a true and fair view of the underlying transactions and events.

We communicate with the managing bodies of the autonomous public company regarding, among other matters, the planned scope and timing of the audit and significant audit findings, including any significant deficiencies in internal control that we identify during our audit.

55ANNUAL REPORT / 9. REPORT OF THE BOARD OF AUDITORS / SKEYES

Responsibilities of the Board of Directors

The Board of Directors is responsible for the preparation and the content of the management report, the compli-ance with the legal and regulatory requirements regard-ing bookkeeping, as well as compliance with the law of 21 March 1991, the management contract of the autono-mous public company and with the Company’s articles of association.

Responsibilities of the Joint Auditor

In the context of our mandate and in accordance with the additional standard to the ISA’s applicable in Belgium, it is our responsibility to verify, in all material respects, the management report, as well as compliance with certain requirements of the law of 21 March 1991 and the articles of association, as well as to report on these matters.

Aspects relating to management’s report

In our opinion, after carrying out specific procedures on the management report, the management report is con-sistent with the Annual Accounts and has been in pre-pared accordance with articles 3:5 and 3:6 of the Code of companies and associations.

In the context of our audit of the Annual Accounts, we are also responsible to consider whether, based on the information that we became aware of during the perfor-mance of our audit, the management’s report contains any material inconsistencies or contains information that is inaccurate or otherwise misleading. In light of the work performed, we do not need to report any material incon-sistencies.

Aspects relating to the social balance sheet

The social balance sheet, to be published in accordance with article 3:12, § 1, 8° of the Code of companies and as-sociations, includes both in form and in substance the required information as prescribed by the Belgian Com-panies and does not contain any material inconsistencies compared to the information we have in our audit files. Independence matters

We have not performed any services that are not compat-ible with the statutory audit of the Annual Accounts and have remained independent of the autonomous public company during the course of our mandate.

Report on other legal and regulatory requirements No additional services, that are compatible with the audit

of the Financial Statements as referred to in Article 3:65 of the Code of companies and associations and for which fees are due, have been carried out.

Other communications

Without prejudice to certain formal aspects of minor importance, the accounting records were maintained in accordance with the legal and regulatory requirements applicable in Belgium taking into account the specific applicable legislation, sometimes deviating from the Belgian Company Code, specifically referring to the law of 31 July 2017 with respect to the change of Section 176 of the law of 21 March 1991 which states that no provision should be created for risks and charges related to dis-ponibility and leave preceding the legal pension of the employees of skeyes.

The appropriation of the results complies with the rele-vant requirements of the law and the Company’s articles of association.

There are no transactions undertaken or decisions taken in breach of the law of 21 March 1991, the articles of asso-ciation or of the third management contract of the au-tonomous public company that we have to report to you.

Brussels, 30 April 2021

The Board of Auditors,The members of the Institute of Company Auditors

EV Réviseurs d’Entreprises SRLStatutory auditorRepresented by

Daniël Wuyts* Partner*Chair of the Board of Auditors

Mazars Réviseurs d’Entreprises SCRLStatutory auditor

Philippe Gossart Partner The Court of Audit represented by

Philippe RolandFirst Chairman of the Court of Audit

Hilde François Chairman of the Court of Audit

*Acting on behalf of a BV

56 SKEYES / ANNUAL REPORT / 9. REPORT OF THE BOARD OF AUDITORS

10ANNUAL REPORT

Annual accounts2020

Balance sheet after appropriation

ASSETS Codes 31/12/2020 (€) 31/12/2019 (€)

Formation expenses 20

FIXED ASSETS 21/28 110 000 626.40 111 708 739.66

Intangible fixed assets 21 327 053.87 363 211.63

Tangible fixed assets 22/27 103 861 971.89 111 111 447.39

Land and buildings 22 53 758 081.60 58 284 068.97

Plant, machinery and equipment 23 33 525 826.97 34 814 318.35

Furniture and vehicles 24 3 292 433.06 3 027 532.08

Leasing and other similar rights 25

Other tangible fixed assets 26

Assets under construction and advance payments 27 13 285 630.26 14 985 527.99

Financial fixed assets 28 5 811 600.64 234 080.64

Affiliated enterprises 280/1 5 779 000.00 200 000.00

Participating interests 280 5 779 000.00 200 000.00

Amounts receivable 281

Enterprises linked by participating interests 282/3

Participating interests 282

Amounts receivable 283

Other financial assets 284/8 32 600.64 34 080.64

Shares 284

Amounts receivable and cash guarantees 285/8 32 600.64 34 080.64

CURRENT ASSETS 29/58 269 507 935.78 185 544 946.19

Amounts receivable after one year 29

Trade debtors 290

Other amounts receivable 291

Stocks and contracts in progress 3

Stocks 30/36

Raw materials and consumables 30/31

Work in progress 32

Finished goods 33

Goods purchased for resale 34

Immovable property intended for sale 35

Advance payments 36

Contracts in progress 37

Amounts receivable within one year 40/41 38 014 093.41 43 046 607.31

Trade debtors 40 12 520 364.12 15 875 181.05

Other amounts receivable 41 25 493 729.29 27 171 426.26

Current investments 50/53 60 001 275.44 78 006 453.31

Portfolio for investment

Other investments and deposits 51/53 60 001 275.44 78 006 453.31

Cash at bank and in hand 54/58 47 073 169.69 28 709 064.78

Deferred charges and accrued income 490/1 124 419 397.24 35 782 820.79

TOTAL ASSETS 20/58 379 508 562.18 297 253 685.85

58 SKEYES / ANNUAL REPORT / 10. ANNUAL ACCOUNTS 2020

EQUITY AND LIABILITIES Codes 31/12/2020 (€) 31/12/2019 (€)

EQUITY 10/15 218 870 990.90 230 729 234.93

Capital 10 145 000 000.00 145 000 000.00

Issued capital 100 145 000 000.00 145 000 000.00

Uncalled capital 101

Share premium account 11

Revaluation surpluses 12

Reserves 13 83 660 034.93 83 660 034.93

Legal reserve 130 14 500 000.00 14 500 000.00

Reserves not available for distribution 131

In respect of own shares held 1310

Other 1311

Reserves

Reserves available for distribution 133 69 160 034.93 69 160 034.93

Accumulated profits (losses) (+)/(-) 14 -11 858 244.03

Investment grants 15 2 069 200.00 2 069 200.00

Advance to associates on the sharing out of net assets 19

PROVISIONS AND DEFERRED TAXES 16 20 411 290.44 19 940 875.57

Provisions for liabilities and charges 160/5 20 411 290.44 19 940 875.57

Pensions and similar obligations 160 2 464 263.88 2 342 367.17

Taxation 161

Major repairs and maintenance 162 12 099 000.32 11 522 000.16

Environnemental obligations 30/36

Other liabilities and charges 164/5 5 848 026.24 6 076 508.24

Deferred taxes 168

LIABILITIES 40/41 140 226 280.84 46 583 575.35

Amounts payable after one year 17 29 503 978.58 668 646.03

Financial debts 170/4 28 760 932.55

Subordinated loans 170

Unsubordinated loans 171

Leasing and other similar obligations 172

Credit institutions 173

Other loans 174 28 760 932.55

Trade debts 175

Suppliers 1750

Bills of exchange payable 1751

Advances received on contracts in progress 176

Other amounts payable 178/9 743 046.03 668 646.03

Amounts payable within one year 42/48 77 826 603.99 37 892 049.94

Current portion of amounts payable after one year 42 25 048 688.07 4 957.87

Financial debts 43

Credit institutions 430/8

Other loans 439

Trade debts 44 32 739 808.05 11 738 526.55

Suppliers 440/4 32 739 808.05 11 738 526.55

Bills of exchange payable 441

Advances received on contracts in progress 46

Taxes, remuneration and social security 45 20 038 107.87 26 148 565.52

Taxes 450/3 395 525.20 875 377.44

Remuneration and social security 454/9 19 642 582.67 25 273 188.08

Other amounts payable 47/48

Accrued charges and deferred income 492/3 32 895 698.27 8 022 879.38

TOTAL LIABILITIES 10/49 379 508 562.18 297 253 685.85

59ANNUAL REPORT / 10. ANNUAL ACCOUNTS 2020 / SKEYES

PROFIT AND LOSS ACCOUNT Codes 31/12/2020 (€) 31/12/2019 (€)

Operating income 70/76A 237 691 218.33 249 549 489.97

Turnover 70 233 951 408.03 245 233 633.28

Increase (Decrease) in stocks of finished goods, work in progress and in contracts in progress (+)/(-) 71

Fixed assets - own construction 72

Other operating income 74 3 724 417.42 3 484 308.84

Extraordinary income 76A 15 392.88 831 547.85

Operating charges 60/66A 249 027 829.38 248 054 919.32

Raw materials, consumables and goods for resale 60

Purchases 600/8

Decrease (increase) in stocks (+)/(-) 609

Services and other goods 61 89 319 361.77 88 225 242.16

Remuneration, social security costs and pensions (+)/(-) 62 141 399 694.50 144 471 215.59

Depreciation and other amounts written off formation expenses and intangible and tangible fixed assets 630 14 398 341.65 11 608 718.31

Amounts written off stocks, contracts in progress and trade debtors - Increase (decrease) (+)/(-) 631/4 1 661 300.16 360 414.73

Provisions for risks and charges - Appropriations (Utilization and write-back) (+)/(-) 635/7 470 414.87 1 940 393.29

Other operating charges 640/8 1 768 935.18 1 440 167.01

Operating charges capitalized as restructuring costs (-) 649

Extraordinary charges 66A 9 781.25 8 768.23

Operating profit (loss) (+)/(-) 9901 -11 336 611.05 1 494 570.65

Financial income 75/76B 43 050.35 39 890.94

Recurring financial income 75 43 050.35 39 890.94

Income from financial fixed assets 750

Income from current assets 751

Other financial income 752/9 43 050.35 39 890.94

Non-recurring financial income 76B

Financial charges 65/66B 564 683.33 19 487.31

Recurring financial charges 65 564 683.33

Interest and other debt charges 650 538 854.56 1 805.07

Amounts written off current assets other than stocks, contracts in progress and trade debtors (+)/(-) 651

Other financial charges 652/9 25 828.77 17 682.24

Non-recurring financial charges 66B

Profit (Loss) of the financial year before taxes (+)/(-) 9903 -11 858 244.03 1 514 974.28

Transfer from deferred taxes 780

Transfer to deferred taxes 680

Income taxes (+)/(-) 67/77 24 270.45

Taxes 670/3 24 270.45

Adjustment of income taxes and write-back of tax provisions 77

Profit (Loss) for the financial year (+)/(-) 9904 -11 858 244.03 1 490 703.83

Transfer from reserves 789

Transfer to reserves 689

Profit (Loss) for the year available for appropriation (+)/(-) 9905 -11 858 244.03 1 490 703.83


PROFIT AND LOSS ACCOUNT Codes 31/12/2020 (€) 31/12/2019 (€)

Operating income 70/76A 237 691 218.33 249 549 489.97

Turnover 70 233 951 408.03 245 233 633.28

Increase (Decrease) in stocks of finished goods, work in progress and in contracts in progress (+)/(-) 71

Fixed assets - own construction 72

Other operating income 74 3 724 417.42 3 484 308.84

Extraordinary income 76A 15 392.88 831 547.85

Operating charges 60/66A 249 027 829.38 248 054 919.32

Raw materials, consumables and goods for resale 60

Purchases 600/8

Decrease (increase) in stocks (+)/(-) 609

Services and other goods 61 89 319 361.77 88 225 242.16

Remuneration, social security costs and pensions (+)/(-) 62 141 399 694.50 144 471 215.59

Depreciation and other amounts written off formation expenses and intangible and tangible fixed assets 630 14 398 341.65 11 608 718.31

Amounts written off stocks, contracts in progress and trade debtors - Increase (decrease) (+)/(-) 631/4 1 661 300.16 360 414.73

Provisions for risks and charges - Appropriations (Utilization and write-back) (+)/(-) 635/7 470 414.87 1 940 393.29

Other operating charges 640/8 1 768 935.18 1 440 167.01

Operating charges capitalized as restructuring costs (-) 649

Extraordinary charges 66A 9 781.25 8 768.23

Operating profit (loss) (+)/(-) 9901 -11 336 611.05 1 494 570.65

Financial income 75/76B 43 050.35 39 890.94

Recurring financial income 75 43 050.35 39 890.94

Income from financial fixed assets 750

Income from current assets 751

Other financial income 752/9 43 050.35 39 890.94

Non-recurring financial income 76B

Financial charges 65/66B 564 683.33 19 487.31

Recurring financial charges 65 564 683.33

Interest and other debt charges 650 538 854.56 1 805.07

Amounts written off current assets other than stocks, contracts in progress and trade debtors (+)/(-) 651

Other financial charges 652/9 25 828.77 17 682.24

Non-recurring financial charges 66B

Profit (Loss) of the financial year before taxes (+)/(-) 9903 -11 858 244.03 1 514 974.28

Transfer from deferred taxes 780

Transfer to deferred taxes 680

Income taxes (+)/(-) 67/77 24 270.45

Taxes 670/3 24 270.45

Adjustment of income taxes and write-back of tax provisions 77

Profit (Loss) for the financial year (+)/(-) 9904 -11 858 244.03 1 490 703.83

Transfer from reserves 789

Transfer to reserves 689

Profit (Loss) for the year available for appropriation (+)/(-) 9905 -11 858 244.03 1 490 703.83

61ANNUAL REPORT / 10. ANNUAL ACCOUNTS 2020 / SKEYES

APPROPRIATION ACCOUNT Codes 31/12/2020 (€) 31/12/2019 (€)

Profit (Loss) to be appropriated (+)/(-) 9906 -11 858 244.03 1 490 703.83

Profit (Loss) for the year available for appropriation (+)/(-) (9905) -11 858 244.03 1 490 703.83

Profit (Loss) brought forward (+)/(-) 14P

Transfers from capital and reserves 791/2

from capital and share premium account 791

from reserves 792

Transfers to capital and reserves 691/2

to capital and share premium account 691

to the legal reserve 6920

to other reserves 6921

Profit (Loss) to be carried forward (+)/(-) (14) -11 858 244.03 1 490 703.83

Shareholders’ contribution in respect of losses 794

Profit to be distributed 694/6

Dividends 694

Directors' or managers' entitlements 695

Other beneficiaries 696


ANNUAL REPORT

Summary of the valuation rules 11

Formation expenses

The formation expenses and initial costs of establishment are immediately booked during the financial year in which they were incurred.

The restructuring expenses are capitalized when they consist of clearly defined expenses that are linked to a drastic change in the structure or the organization of the company and when these expenses have a permanent and favourable impact on the profitability of the company.

These expenses are amortized in annual instalments of 20%.

Intangible fixed assets

The royalties for patents and licences are booked in this section and are subject to a linear amortization percentage of 20% a year.

Studies, on the other hand, are immediately booked under ‘Services and other goods’ (applied from the year 2000 onwards).

Tangible assets

The tangible assets are booked under the assets of the balance sheet at their purchase value, including the extra costs which, for major projects, comprise the non-recoverable taxes and transport charges, as well as the fees for architects and engineering firms (with regard to stability, special techniques, safety and control).

Amortization is calculated per month in a linear way, according to the percentages mentioned in the amortization table, while the month of coming into service corresponds to the first monthly amortization instalment.

The fixed assets are considered as operational either on the date of the report of the provisional acceptance (on that date, they can be removed from the section ‘Tangible assets under construction’ under which they were registered, and booked to their specific account), or on the date of the delivery of the goods.

In exceptional circumstances, skeyes can provide for amortization on ‘tangible assets under construction’ when the putting into service takes place before the provisional acceptance; in such a case, the actual date of putting into service is taken into account.

The categories of (in)tangible fixed assets were reviewed, further differentiated and refined in 2019. Depending

on the estimated economic life of the investments in the various categories, the depreciation rates were determined. For some categories the depreciation period becomes longer, for others shorter.

The effect of this adjustment on depreciation for the year 2020 amounts to + € 1,325 k.

Financial fixed assets

Affiliated enterprises

The financial fixed assets are booked on the assets side of the balance sheet at their purchase value.

At the end of each financial year, the valuation is revised in accordance with the situation, profitability or prospects of the company in which the participation is held.

Amounts written off are booked for the financial fixed as-sets for which a durable capital loss is determined or for which the repayment, as a whole or partly, is insecure or in danger.

Write-backs of the amounts written off is carried out to an amount of the said amounts written off if, later on, a durable capital gain is determined.

When the estimated value is higher than the value of the booked item, in principle, no changes are made to the ac-counting value.

Amounts receivable after one year

The amounts receivable are booked at their nominal value or their purchase value.

A write-off is carried out when the realisation value on the closing date is lower than the accounting value - provided that this constitutes a durable capital loss - or when the refunding upon maturity, as a whole or partly, is insecure or in danger.

The valuation rules concerning currencies are applicable to this.

Stocks

The purchased goods represent a relatively insignificant amount compared to the total of the section ‘Operating charges’. They are allocated to the section ‘Services and other goods’ and consequently they are booked com-pletely at the time of delivery.

Assets

64 SKEYES / ANNUAL REPORT / 11. SUMMARY OF THE VALUATION RULES

Amounts receivable within one year

The amounts receivable are booked at their nominal value or their purchase value and are subject to the same valua-tion rules as the amounts receivable after one year.

Current investments

The investments on time-deposit accounts are booked at their purchase value;

The investments in transferable securities are rated at the market value, which measures in a useful way the yield of the investment for the covered period on the date of the report;

The instruments that have a fixed amount payable at maturity, and which are not marketable on the market, are valued as if they had a constant yield level until their due date.

Provisions for liabilities and charges

At the end of every financial year, the Board of Directors investigates with care, sincerity and in good faith, the provisions that have to be made in order to cover the provisions for liabilities and charges to be expected, i.e.:

Charges inherent to major repairs and maintenance;

Risks that resulted in the course of the financial year from clearly described future losses and charges;

Losses or charges of a clearly defined nature, incurred during the financial year, but of which the amount is not yet determined;

The obligations resulting from individual agreements concluded with members of staff, having a final character and that have materialised as agreements concluded within the framework of restructuring measures.

The risk of losses because skeyes is committed to a performance plan that sets the tariffs for ‘en-route’ activity for a certain reference period for the cost-efficiency part. Based on yearly updates of the traffic evolution prospects we calculate the losses that we will suffer due to the traffic risk for the remaining years of the reference period and that are our responsibility.

Liabilities

The provisions built up during the previous financial years are to be reviewed and written-back if they are no longer wholly or partially necessary.

Amounts payable after one year and payable within one year

These amounts are recorded at their nominal par value.

The salaries and social security expenses are valued according to the current social and fiscal legislation and in line with the agreements concluded with the employees’ unions.

The valuation rules concerning currencies are applicable to this.

Accrued charges and deferred incomeThe section contains:

The imputable costs, i.e. the pro rata of charges that will only be paid in a future financial year, but which refer to the previous financial year;

The deferred income, i.e. the pro rata of income that has been collected in the course of the financial year or a previous year, but which refer wholly or partly to a future financial year

Deferred charges and accrued income

This section comprises:

Costs to be carried forward, i.e. the pro rata of costs that were incurred during the financial year or the previous financial year, but which have to be booked to one or more subsequent financial years;

Acquired profits, i.e. the pro rata of profits that are collected only in the course of a subsequent financial year, but which refer to the past financial year.

65ANNUAL REPORT / 11. SUMMARY OF THE VALUATION RULES / SKEYES

Variables

General principles applicable to the valuation of the assets and liabilities that are expressed in currency

The transactions in foreign currency are converted into Euro at the rate of exchange the day of the transaction.

At the end of the financial year, the assets (intangible, tangible or financial) as well as the other assets and liabilities for the part of the balance of those accounts expressed or originally in currencies, are converted to the rate of exchange applicable at the time of their entry.

NOTE: C 6.10. OPERATING RESULTS - PENSIONS

In application of article 85, paragraph 2 of the RD of 30 January 2001, we have adapted the section “Staff Costs – Retirement and Survivor’s Pensions” in note C. 6.10 to the specific features of our company. This section contains the contribution of 35% paid to the State, in accordance with the current value of the acquired and future retirement pension rights of the active staff members.

ADDITIONAL MENTIONS TO NOTE C. 6.10 AND TO THE SOCIAL ACCOUNTING C.6. “WORKERS FOR WHOM THE COMPANY INTRODUCED A DIMONA DECLARATION OR WHO WERE ENTERED IN THE GENERAL PERSONNEL REGISTER”

skeyes has introduced a DIMONA declaration for its statutory workers who are not bound by an employment contract (which means that the Employment Contracts Act is not applicable); they have been mentioned in the social balance sheet of permanent workers since the creation of skeyes.

NOTE ON THE END-OF-CAREER COSTS OF AIR TRAFFIC CONTROLLERS

In Belgium, just like in many other European countries, air traffic controllers are subject to a long-standing system whereby they acquire a non-active status a number of years before their pension. As part of this system, they receive a significant part of their salary without any performances in return. They remain however at the

66 SKEYES / ANNUAL REPORT / 11. SUMMARY OF THE VALUATION RULES

disposal of skeyes. The cost of this system is borne by the company, which adds it to the cost base it charges to its customers.

Since the creation of skeyes the costs of the air traffic controllers’ non-active status have been entered under personnel costs at the time of payment of this compensation (consistent financial reporting framework). In accordance with European regulations applicable to the charging of air navigation services, these end-of-career costs are financed simultaneously by charging customers. In application of the ‘matching’ concept in accounting, there is a consistency between the costs (compensation paid to the air traffic controllers) and the revenues (charging the compensation back to the customers).

The law of 31 July 2017 amending Article 176 of the law of 21 March 1991 confirms that skeyes does not have to make provision for obligations in respect of risks and charges for the non-active status and pre-pension leave of its staff.

EXPLANATION: VOL 2.1 DIRECTORS’ MANDATES

In application of the principle of continuity of public service, the directors’ mandates were extended by operation of law until new directors were appointed. This was confirmed by a letter from the competent minister on 16 September 2019.

67ANNUAL REPORT / 11. SUMMARY OF THE VALUATION RULES / SKEYES

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