The re-emergence of air traffic in 2022 was a welcome transformation, but problems, particularly in Europe, accompanied it. There were considerable setbacks and limited resources at key airports, leading to a disruption in flight schedules. Eurocontrol reported that the arrival delays had escalated to 16.9 minutes per flight, a 33% rise compared to 2019. The punctuality of flights departing at the start of July was below the 50% mark. The severity of the situation in 2022 resulted in 6.9% of projected flights not departing. The issue is unfortunately forecasted to deteriorate in the 2023 summer season in the northern hemisphere.
Rory Sergison, IATA's Head of ATM Infrastructure Europe, shed light on obstacles such as European airspace closures and military activity, marked growth in air traffic, and potential industrial unrest. The issue is made worse because the network manager at Eurocontrol needs the authority to coordinate European airspace, so it's hard to get traffic running smoothly.
To lessen the worst difficulties, ANSPs and states must be decisive and precise, offering superior service and more vital targets. ANSPs and airports should be more flexible with scheduling, and tech and procedure upgrades would greatly help. Europe's airspace has its issues, but if ANSPs are more dynamic and strive to offer more capacity for better customer service, progress can be made.
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