19.01.06
Airlines face a sharp increase in charges at airports across Europe as these seek to fund an €80bn 10-year investment programme in new runways and terminals.
Air travel in Europe is set to double by 2020 to two billion passengers a year, according to an industry study. The number of airports experiencing severe congestion at peak times will double to 60, even with a 60 percent increase in capacity.
The study by Eurocontrol, which manages Europe's upper airspace, found that 20 airports, including Heathrow, Amsterdam, Paris Charles de Gaulles, Frankfurt and Madrid, 'will be saturated for at least 8 to 10 hours a day'
The Eurocontrol study predicted that there would be 'strong pressure to accelerate a switchover to larger aircraft,' which could allow many more passengers to be handled with the same number of runway slots.
Eurocontrol said that airports could squeeze 20 to 30 percent more flights on to existing runways by making modest investments in new taxiways, runway exits and holding areas for aircraft queueing to take off. Airports Council International Europe, the airport operators' association, said the 'capacity crunch' was so serious that decisions on major investment could no longer be delayed.
Airport charges in Europe represent 5.4 percent of airlines' costs, significantly higher than the international average of 4 percent. The International Air Transport Association, which represents 265 airlines, said that it would fiercely resist increases in airport charges.
