Proposal for a Regulation of the European Parliament and of the Council amending Council Regulation (EEC) No 95/93 of 18 January 1993 on common rules for the allocation of slots at Community airports (the ‘Slot Regulation’) to prolong the COVID-19 emergency measures and provide for continuing resilience and flexibility of the rules
Date: 2022-04-26
Institutions: Directorate-General for Mobility and Transport, European Commission
Subjects: common transport policy



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CALL FOR EVIDENCE


FOR AN INITIATIVE  (without an impact assessment)






This document aims to inform the public and stakeholders about the Commission's work, so they can provide feedback and participate effectively in consultation activities. 


We ask these groups to provide views on the Commission's understanding of the problem and possible solutions, and to give us any relevant information they may have. 






Title of the initiative




Update of common rules for the allocation of slots at European Union airports






Lead DG – responsible unit 




DG MOVE - E1






Likely Type of initiative




Commission proposal to amend the Slot Regulation 






Indicative Timing




Q3 2022






Additional Information




Airports (europa.eu)






This document is for information purposes only. It does not prejudge the final decision of the Commission on whether this initiative will be pursued or on its final content. All elements of the initiative described by this document, including its timing, are subject to change.









A. Political context, problem definition and subsidiarity check






Political context 






The impact of the COVID-19 pandemic on air traffic has led the EU to grant airlines relief from the usual EU slot use requirements. This relief came in the form of a reduced use rate (compared to the standard use rate of 80% - commonly referred to as the use-it-or-lose-it rule) and the possibility for airlines to invoke justified non-use exceptions (JNUS) for routes where COVID-19 sanitary measures (e.g. lockdowns, unavoidable quarantines, etc.) severely impeded passengers’ ability to travel. This EU slot relief expires on 29 October 2022, i.e. at the end of the summer 2022 scheduling season.


The continuing COVID-19 sanitary uncertainty, the divergent recovery and vaccination rates worldwide and the continuing restrictions in many regions necessitate the prolongation of slot relief. Such prolongation will be time-limited and aim, on the one hand, to continue providing relief to airlines where needed and, on the other hand, will ensure the pro-competitive and efficient use of airport capacity during the recovery period from the COVID-19 pandemic. Member States and airlines have called on the Commission to ensure that relief from slot-use requirements is available to airlines beyond the summer 2022 scheduling season. Good coordination of the use of JNUS across the EU should also be ensured.


Furthermore, Russia’s invasion of Ukraine is also having an effect on airlines’ schedules and their ability to efficiently use airport capacity. 


As a result, and given the exceptional nature of the situation, the Slot use requirements in the Slot Regulation should be temporarily adapted to address both the continuing impact from the COVID-19 pandemic and the recent disruptions to the efficient use of airport slots caused by the Russian invasion of Ukraine. 


The rules should also aim to enable speedy and efficient restoration of connectivity between the European Union and Ukraine once safety and security permit.






Problem the initiative aims to tackle 






The COVID-19 slot relief measures will end on 29 October 2022. While air traffic levels have recovered substantially since the start of the COVID-19 pandemic and the air traffic forecasts indicate that the return to the usual 80% use rate is possible as of the start of the winter 2022/2023 scheduling season, there are still certain markets particularly affected due to sanitary measures imposed by public authorities that can severely impede air travel. At any given time, countries can decide to close down again if new variants emerge. To a large extent long-haul markets (e.g. to Asian countries) are affected, where airlines cannot easily re-purpose slots to other destinations without losing their slots at the other end of the route. Thus, without the extension of justified non-use exceptions that permit airlines to request alleviation in case of remaining sanitary measures that severely restrict passengers’ ability to travel, airlines would risk loss of connectivity to long-haul markets, with detrimental impacts on the airlines, airports and consumers.


As the Russian invasion of Ukraine led to flight bans (prohibiting flights from EU carriers into Russian and Belarussian airspace and vice versa) and to the closure of the Ukrainian airspace, EU airport capacity may not always be used most efficiently. As airlines can no longer overfly the Russian, Belarussian and Ukrainian airspace, routes to destinations in the East have to be re-routed which can add significant flight time to the operations. Re-timings of a large number of slots may have an impact on the rest of the airport capacity. Furthermore, the prohibition on Russian and Belarussian air carriers to fly into EU airspace results in the unjustified blocking of slots at EU airports. While slots previously used by Russian or Belarussian carriers can be re-allocated on an ad hoc basis during the scheduling season, the reallocation comes too late in the season to lead to the efficient use of slots enabling airlines to increase long-term competition and connectivity for the benefit of consumers. 


Flexibility will also be needed, in particular for Ukrainian air carriers and flights to/from Ukraine once the airspace re-opens to facilitate the gradual recovery of the routes and restore connectivity between the Union and Ukraine.


In addition, the unpredictable developments with new COVID-19 variants and the impact of the Russian war against Ukraine on air traffic and passengers’ ability to travel could potentially again significantly reduce air traffic and result in levels substantially lower than in 2019. Therefore, the Commission should have the possibility to lower the slot use-rate by Delegated Act, if justified. Finally, the use of JNUS should be better coordinated in order to ensure a consistent implementation of the common EU regime.






Basis for EU action (legal basis and subsidiarity check) 






Legal basis






The legal basis giving the EU the right to act is Article 100(2) of the Treaty on the Functioning of the European Union. In accordance with Article 4(2) of the Treaty, shared competence between the EU and the Member States applies in the area of transport.






Practical need for EU action






Due to the inherent cross-border nature of both aviation and the COVID-19 crisis as well as the impact of the Russian war against Ukraine on the entire EU aviation market, the issue at hand cannot be dealt with at the national level and requires common action at EU and international level. Leaving Member States to act alone would result in a patchwork of national measures leading to market fragmentation and distortions of competition.






B. What does the initiative aim to achieve and how 






This initiative aims to promote the most efficient use of airport capacity by airlines and prevent that airlines operate flights only to maintain their slots or unjustly block airport capacity from being used. It aims to strike a balance between, on the one hand, the need to grant airlines alleviation from certain slot usage requirements and, on the other hand, minimise the risk of competition distortions that may occur if airlines use the slot relief to exclude new entry and expansion by other airlines. The initiative also aims to facilitate the recovery and full return of connectivity between the Union and Ukraine.


 


To address the continuing impact of COVID-19 on air traffic, the Commission intends to extend the justified non-use of slots (JNUS) exception in cases where sanitary measures introduced by public authorities severely impede air travel, and to clarify the procedure to ensure a consistent application of JNUS across the EU.



It should be clarified how slots at EU airports of carriers that are prohibited from flying into EU airspace should be treated to ensure the most efficient use of airport capacity.



The long-term impact of re-timing a large number of slots as EU airlines are prohibited from overflying Russian airspace must also be considered.






Likely impacts






The initiative will directly impact airlines and airports. Airlines will benefit from flexibility from normal slot-use requirements in markets that continue to be affected by COVID-19. This will facilitate maintaining (long-haul) connections which is beneficial to airports and consumers as well. It will also facilitate the recovery of connectivity between the Union and Ukraine, thereby benefiting EU and Ukrainian airlines and airports.



Clarifying how slots of air carriers that are prohibited from flying into EU airspace are treated, promotes efficient use of airport capacity to the benefit of airports and airlines operating in the EU. It will negatively affect air carriers prohibited from operating in the EU.






Future monitoring






The Commission is in regular contact with airlines, airports and slot-coordinators to monitor the application of the Slot Regulation in light of the pandemic.






C. Better regulation






Impact assessment 






An Impact Assessment will not be conducted. The problems should be addressed with urgency as it will support recovery from the impacts of the COVID-19 outbreak. It will also add flexibility and urgently clarify rules in the context of Russia’s invasion of Ukraine and resulting measures imposed (flight bans/sanctions). Further, the amendment will be limited in scope and in time. Moreover, this proposal will build on two years of practical experience with similar slot relief measures. 






Consultation strategy 






With this Call for Evidence the Commission invites all interested parties to submit positions and evidence on the above-stated problems and objectives. The responses will be taken into account in deciding the next steps. The Commission will take all the necessary steps to disseminate this Call for Evidence as widely as possible.