The European Parliament last month approved a gradual return to the ‘use it or lose it’ rules on the allocation of slots at EU airports.
The rule was suspended from March 2020 to March 2021 and then gradually reinstated, little by little in the following seasons.
After more than two years of slot waivers, the EU has decided it is time to return to business-as-usual rules, similar to those in place before the coronavirus pandemic. There will now be a 75% minimum usage rate, just below the pre-COVID 80% cut-off.
From the 2023 summer season, the standard 80% slot utilisation requirement will apply.
This follows the situation at the start of the pandemic, where some airlines were flying empty aircraft just to keep slots. These flights were known as ‘ghost flights’. This was resolved with slot rule waivers in place from the summer 2020 season, whereby airlines didn't have to fully utilise slots to keep them.
The European Parliament has approved qualified exceptions that will justify not using the slots, such as epidemiological emergencies, natural disasters, or widespread political unrest with a disruptive effect on air travel.
