EU focus on airport capacity welcomed

Europe's branch of the Airports Council International (ACI) has welcomed the launch of a new EU body to focus on the issue of airport capacity across the continent.

The observatory was set up specifically to address the problem of capacity constraints across Europe and had its first meeting this week in Brussels.

One of the issues to be considered by the body is the problem of aligning airport capacity with air traffic management resources in order to avoid delays and congestion.

According to the ACI, Europe is currently facing an "airport capacity crunch" which was recently highlighted by Eurocontrol.

Olivier Jankovec, director general of ACI Europe, said: "The observatory is a step in the right direction. The EU can no longer afford to ignore the extensive economic and environmental risks linked to airport congestion.

"We need to monitor airport capacity on an ongoing basis and consider the performance of the European aviation network as a whole."

Mr Jankovec said that authorities must adopt a long-term view of the situation and stressed that increased airport capacity "cannot be conjured up overnight".

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