Airlines warn delays will continue without investment in airspace

Delays will continue to hamper European Union air travel if member states do not invest in opening up their skies, airlines say.

The latest report on the EU’s Single European Sky performance shows that delays increased by 400 per cent last year, when capacity squeezes hindered air travel’s recovery from pandemic restrictions.

Industry group Airlines for Europe (A4E), whose members include Ryanair and Aer Lingus owner IAG, says the report shows EU member states are failing to meet agreed performance plans to maximise the region’s airspace.

The organisation predicts that the situation is unlikely to improve, as the performance review body which produced the report repeats previous calls on EU members to act now to avoid future capacity squeezes.

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The EU’s decades-old Single European Sky project aims to unify airspace in the region, but airlines frequently accuse member states of hampering these efforts.

Staff shortages, strikes and the loss of airspace to the Ukraine war have all put pressure on Europe’s already crowded skies.

A4E maintains that air travellers face a perfect storm of rising demand and tightened capacity.

“This could easily be remedied if the member states use all means available to them to improve systems and plug the increasing gap between demand and capacity in Europe’s airspace,” said the group.

Ourania Georgoutsakou, A4E’s managing director, said Europe’s airspace remained stuck on the ground.

“We can’t afford another repeat of the 400 per cent increase in the average delay per flight,” she added. “Europe’s passengers deserve better.”

She dubbed the report a call to action. “We need to bolster Europe’s airspace capacity, drive reforms in its operation and pave the way for airlines to operate more efficiently,” Ms Georgoutsakou argued.

“Not only will this deliver a better passenger service, it will also further enable airlines to reduce their environmental footprint.”