The European Commission has supported European coordination on aviation noise for a while. This coordination took its ground on guidelines put forward by the Advisory Council for Aeronautics Research in Europe (ACARE), which enacted a series of objectives firstly in 2002 and then in 2011.

In 2002, objectives for 2020 air transport were:

1. to lower 50% of the carbon dioxide (CO₂) emitted per km and per passenger;
2. to lower 80% of the nitrogen oxides (NO_x) emitted per km and per passenger;
3. to lower 50% of the perceived noise for new aircraft compared to existing ones.

In 2011, ACARE stimulated even more ambitious objectives. These objectives, summarised in Flightpath 2050 Europe's Vision for Aviation, were the following:

1. to lower 75% of the carbon dioxide (CO₂) emitted per km and per passenger;
2. to lower 90% of the nitrogen oxides (NO_x) emitted per km and per passenger;
3. to lower 65% of the perceived noise for new aircraft compared to existing ones.

For both sets of objectives, the percentages remain compared to the ones of the year 2000 taken as reference.

As for noise, immediately, the question arose of translating such political goals into something measurable and evaluable. A consensus quickly emerged to translate these political objectives, respectively, into -10dB (indeed effectively perceived noise in decibels or EPNdB) for 2020 and into -15dB (EPNdB) in 2050 per aircraft and per operation (take-off or landing).

It must be noted that these objectives take into account the way the human ear perceives a noise reduction. Halving the noise (expressed as -50%) is perceived by humans once the noise level is reduced by -10 dB. The so-called Noy- scale is used for this translation.

Reaching such ambitious objectives convinced the European Commission to grant a Common Support Action – the X-Noise network – to define, maintain and enrich the European Roadmap on Aviation Noise Research. Year after year, the X-Noise network played its role from its creation in 1998 up to its end in 2015 (the X-Noise website has not been maintained since then).

After X-Noise, the ANIMA project (2017-2021) embodied X-Noise's role through a specific work package dedicated to such a roadmap and European experts' coordination. With the ending of ANIMA in December 2021, the X-Noise coordination effort is at risk if funding for this network cannot be secured.

X-Noise started gathering a comprehensive set of European experts to identify gaps in reducing aviation noise and proposing associated projects. X-Noise was, and remains, a network of aircraft and engine engineers who focused their initial effort on reducing noise at source.

Consequently, from 2000 until 2010, projects were primarily focused on technological bases aiming to reduce various noise sources such as jet noise, fan noise, airframe noise, and proposing noise reduction technologies such as passive or active liners. This kind of approach led to countless EU research projects in the EU Research Programme framework (FP6, FP7, FP8, Horizon 2020). The timeline below shows the EU roadmap of projects classified by noise sources at the beginning of ANIMA.

The issue of aviation noise was mostly dealt with by engineers (noise impact management and societal approaches were tackled only marginally). Technological bricks were progressively integrated into larger projects endeavouring to demonstrate phases of formerly-matured technologies.

^{Projects Roadmap towards 2020 Noise Target (-10dB per operation)}

The European Commission decided to launch ANIMA and renewed technological research projects. It was also agreed that ANIMA – started in 2017 – will take over the former X-Noise network as the EU flagship project for aviation noise, nurturing technology-oriented projects with considerations on health and annoyance and, conversely, enriching its scenarios with new possibilities offered by technology.

Within ANIMA, the coordination follows three objectives:

1. To establish and update a joint strategic research roadmap for aviation noise reduction through a scenario-based approach, addressing the development of new technologies and methodologies;
2. To coordinate a network of experts and research actors in support of the roadmap process, stimulating the emergence of novel approaches to overcome gaps, ensuring minimal duplication and fragmentation in the course of future research efforts;
3. To explore possibilities to facilitate and establish practical conditions for targeted international collaboration in line with the strategy for EU international cooperation in research and innovation and the need to put forward the strategic roadmap for aviation noise, including aspects related to international regulatory discussions.

ANIMA delivered regular recommendations to the European Commission on possible international collaborations topics concerning its in-depth contacts with non-EU stakeholders, especially from the countries exposed in the section dedicated to International coordination.

ANIMA also favoured through specialised workshops on aviation noise in various EU countries. It contributed to extending the European Research network eastward, especially towards the Balkan countries where the network was not well developed.

^{2020-2021 geographical extension of the ANIMA network of experts}

Through its workshops and dedicated sessions, ANIMA also encompassed new technological projects dedicated to aviation noise:

1. AFLONEXT – Active Flow Loads & Noise control on the next-generation wing;
2. ENOVAL – ENgine mOdule VALidators;
3. TurboNoiseBB – Validation of improved turbomachinery noise prediction models and development of novel design methods for fan stages with reduced broadband noise;
4. RUMBLE – RegUlation and norM for low sonic Boom Levels;
5. ARTEM – Aircraft noise Reduction Technologies and related Environmental iMpact;
6. AERIALIST – AdvancEd aicRaft-noIse-AlLeviation devIceS using meTamaterials;
7. IMAGE – Innovative Methodologies and technologies for reducing Aircraft noise Generation and Emission;
8. ΙCARe – International Cooperation in Aviation Research;
9. DJINN - Decrease Jet-Installation Noise;
10. INVENTOR - Innovative Design Of Installed Airframe Components For Aircraft Noise Reduction;
11. ENODISE - ENabling Optimised DISruptivE Airframe-Propulsion Integration Concepts;
12. SENECA - (Landing and Take-Off) noiSe and EmissioNs of supErsoniC Aircraft;
13. MORE&LESS - MDO and REgulations for Low-boom and Environmentally Sustainable Supersonic aviation.

This coordination effort led to the renewed projects roadmap below.

^{Short term timeline of ongoing or recently-ended EU research projects related to aviation noise}

This increased research also allows to assess the roadmap towards the new 2050 Noise Target (see below). Roadmap development achievement showcases the efforts for this matter and, above all, for the remaining gaps towards the 2050 objectives. It is now visible that for filling the gaps towards the objectives, it is necessary to enable new technologies, operate new aircraft architecture, and better manage noise impact.

^{New projects Roadmap towards 2050 Noise Target (-15dB per operation)}

However, as sole engineers started the roadmap development task, these gaps were mostly expressed in the lack of technology. Many roadmaps were confidential, thus sharing and comparison opportunities were limited.

All of this was the rationale behind the efforts made by ANIMA to issue some integrated and homogenised roadmaps that would encompass the technical aspects and some new viewpoints to assess steps made and steps remaining in terms of aviation noise impact on people.