New Proposal to Amend the System of Airport Slot Allocation in the European Union

Abstract

Although air traffic in Europe is forecasted to double by 2030, many major European airport hubs are operating at or close to full capacity already today, i.e. they cannot meet the airlines' demand for takeoff and landing slots. A continuous increase of airport capacity (mostly by adding additional runways) is hardly possible in the densely populated European Union. The Council Regulation (EEC) 95/93 on common rules for the allocation of slots at Community airports (CR 95/93) establishes a set of rules for the allocation of takeoff and landing slots which are the most critical bottleneck in European air traffic. The basic allocation principle is grandfather rights: an airline will generally be allocated the same slot in the subsequent scheduling period which it has used in the respective preceding period. Based on the current allocation scheme, peak hour slots at congested airports are almost never available for allocation to a different air carrier. Also, the current allocation scheme does not take into account the seats available on the aircraft used by an airline or whether such aircraft is fuel-efficient or particularly loud. In sum, the current slot allocation mechanism based on grandfather rights does not necessarily promote the efficient use of scarce runway capacity or competition between airlines. Several attempts have been made by the European Commission to alter CR 95/93, but the basic principle of grandfather rights was always preserved. On 1 December 2011, the European Commission published its 'Proposal of the European Parliament and of the Council for a regulation on common rules for the allocation of slots at European Union airports', which objective is to ensure optimal allocation and use of airport slots at congested airports, primarily by strengthening and effectively implementing slot allocation and use, and enhancing fair competition and competitiveness of operators. In preparation of this Proposal, the European Commission carried out a public consultation in 2010 and commissioned various studies to independent consultancy firms. This article discusses the various options explored in the public consultation and the studies which have been included by the European Commission in its Proposal, and what the potential upsides and downsides of such options are should they be eventually enacted.