The EU is taking urgent action to temporarily suspend slot requirements, forcing airlines to use at least 80% of take-off and landing slots to keep them for the next year.
Thus, the Croatian Presidency of the Council of the European Union has been mandated to urgently negotiate with the European Parliament a proposal to waive slot requirements by 24 October 2020 in order to help air carriers cope with the crisis caused by COVID-19.
Negotiations provide that the waiver of the slot will apply from March 1 to October 24, 2020, to cover the entire summer season. It will also apply retroactively between 23 January and 29 February 2020 for flights between the EU and China or Hong Kong, with 23 January being the time when the first airport was closed by Chinese authorities.
If the aviation crisis persists, the measure can be quickly extended by a delegated act of the European Commission.
The introduction of slot waivers requires an amendment to the EU slot regulation. Similar changes have been triggered by other emergencies, including the terrorist attacks of 2002, the war in Iraq and the outbreak of SARS in 2003, and the financial crisis of 2009.
The amendment to EU Regulation 95/93 for slots must be approved by both the Council of the European Union and the European Parliament. Both institutions are working to finalize the emergency proposal, informs the Council of the European Union.
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