Ghost flights: empty planes cross Europe to keep airport slots
Thread Starter
Ghost flights: empty planes cross Europe to keep airport slots
I can't post links yet, please search for
http://thenationalnews@com/world/eur...-airport-slots
The EU is being urged to relax airline rules that led to thousands of empty planes crossing Europe over the winter, prompting concerns over the effect on the climate and unnecessary waste of resources.
German airline Lufthansa said it would have to run 18,000 empty flights during the winter to keep its airport slots.
Its Belgian subsidiary, Brussels Airlines, expects 3,000 such trips by the end of March.
The so-called “use it or lose it” rule means that airlines must use 80 per cent of their allocated slots at airports or risk losing their take-off and landing rights to other carriers.
Although the EU reduced this to 50 per cent after air travel slumped during the pandemic, the threshold will rise again this summer, and critics say it is still too high given the unpredictable effects of the Omicron variant.
http://thenationalnews@com/world/eur...-airport-slots
The EU is being urged to relax airline rules that led to thousands of empty planes crossing Europe over the winter, prompting concerns over the effect on the climate and unnecessary waste of resources.
German airline Lufthansa said it would have to run 18,000 empty flights during the winter to keep its airport slots.
Its Belgian subsidiary, Brussels Airlines, expects 3,000 such trips by the end of March.
The so-called “use it or lose it” rule means that airlines must use 80 per cent of their allocated slots at airports or risk losing their take-off and landing rights to other carriers.
Although the EU reduced this to 50 per cent after air travel slumped during the pandemic, the threshold will rise again this summer, and critics say it is still too high given the unpredictable effects of the Omicron variant.
Last edited by Senior Pilot; 6th Feb 2022 at 20:27. Reason: Add url
Join Date: Oct 1999
Location: LHR
Posts: 556
Likes: 0
Received 0 Likes
on
0 Posts
God bless the EU!
Meanwhile the Greens are having nightmares about Chemtrails and the hundreds of empty aeroplanes racing across the sky needlessly burning fossil fuels. The Insulation Rebellion zealots will be out again super-gluing their faces to the M25 in protest.
Meanwhile the Greens are having nightmares about Chemtrails and the hundreds of empty aeroplanes racing across the sky needlessly burning fossil fuels. The Insulation Rebellion zealots will be out again super-gluing their faces to the M25 in protest.
How about just returning any unneeded slots so the next guy can make use of them? Airports like EGKK could offer capacity instead of being considered maxed out by fantasy flights.
Join Date: Mar 2001
Location: I wouldn't know.
Posts: 4,498
Likes: 0
Received 0 Likes
on
0 Posts
It seems to be a problem only to the Lufthansa Group. Haven't read (this time) any other airline group complaining about the still very much relaxed slot rules. Now, Lufthansa very much likes to spend the tens of billions in government support on public relations exercises like this one and of course in acquiring other failing airlines like ITA, distorting competition like nobody else does.
I expect DRUK along soon with statistics but looking at FR 24 fir Heathrow if they are flying empty planes to keep slots you would expect the volume of flights to be at pre pandemic levels....they are not ...visually
Airlines need to use 70% of U.K. airport slots or lose them, in the EU the threshold is 64%.
Grant Shapps says this is another brexit win.
Willie Walsh incensed.
https://www.thetimes.co.uk/article/s...ghts-8dxcr6qc6
Grant Shapps says this is another brexit win.
Willie Walsh incensed.
https://www.thetimes.co.uk/article/s...ghts-8dxcr6qc6
Join Date: Jul 2011
Location: Edinburgh
Age: 39
Posts: 642
Likes: 0
Received 0 Likes
on
0 Posts
I thought the airliens were making money off these ghost planes by offering then as cargo flights in a lot of instances?
It seems silly to keep slots going in the hope they can be used again..surely cash strapped airlines would be bett r selling off excessive slots rather than wasting money on empty planes?
It seems silly to keep slots going in the hope they can be used again..surely cash strapped airlines would be bett r selling off excessive slots rather than wasting money on empty planes?
Join Date: Mar 2017
Location: everywhere
Posts: 447
Likes: 0
Received 0 Likes
on
0 Posts
I thought the airliens were making money off these ghost planes by offering then as cargo flights in a lot of instances?
It seems silly to keep slots going in the hope they can be used again..surely cash strapped airlines would be bett r selling off excessive slots rather than wasting money on empty planes?
It seems silly to keep slots going in the hope they can be used again..surely cash strapped airlines would be bett r selling off excessive slots rather than wasting money on empty planes?
Some illustrative totals (monthly movements):
January 2020: 38 112
January 2021: 10 114
January 2022: 22 434
