These documents support the implementation of Virtual Centres (VCs) within Air Traffic Management (ATM) environments by providing guidance and interoperability requirements to enable harmonised, efficient, and interoperable Virtual Centre operations. Their purpose is to establish a common understanding of the Virtual Centre concept, define the necessary interoperability frameworks, and support stakeholders in the transition towards virtualised ATM service provision.

The documents form part of the work undertaken within WG-122 – Virtual Centre and build upon ER-029, Taxonomy of Services for Virtual Centres, together with relevant SESAR initiatives and industry activities. ED-357 provides a holistic overview of the Virtual Centre concept, including a comprehensive VC taxonomy, implementation considerations, and references to existing standards and their maturity. It is complemented by the ED-358 series, comprising ED-358_1, Interoperability Standard for Virtual Centres – Volume 1: General ATM Data Services, ED-358_2, Interoperability Standard for Virtual Centres – Volume 2: Flight Data Management Services, and ED-358_3, Interoperability Standard for Virtual Centres – Volume 3: Flight Data Distribution Services, which define common and service-specific interoperability requirements for Virtual Centre environments.

Together, these documents contribute to a harmonised framework for the virtualisation of ATM operations, supporting information exchange, service integration, and collaboration between ANSPs, industry stakeholders, Network Managers, and other external parties. They align with the outcomes of the A6 Task Force and support the ATM Master Plan vision for the virtualisation of operations.

Compliance with these documents is recommended as a means of facilitating consistent and interoperable Virtual Centre implementations and supporting the successful deployment of Virtual Centre capabilities across the ATM ecosystem.