Aviation

(asked on 24th January 2022) - View Source

Question to the Department for Transport:

To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, how many flights with no or very few passengers have operated in the UK to ensure that landing slots are retained by airlines in (a) 2020, (b) 2021 and (c) 2022 to date.


Answered by
Robert Courts Portrait
Robert Courts
Solicitor General (Attorney General's Office)
This question was answered on 27th January 2022

The COVID-19 pandemic has had a significant impact on air passenger demand and this has inevitably led to flights with fewer passengers. We do not hold reliable data on the number of flights with no or very few passengers flown in order to retain slots.

Since the start of the pandemic the Government has implemented alleviation from the usual slot usage requirements – these were originally intended to protect airlines’ finances while minimising the risk of airlines operating environmentally damaging ghost flights solely to retain slots. The rules requiring airlines to use slots in order to retain them were fully suspended for the Summer 2020, Winter 2020/21 and Summer 2021 seasons. The UK’s exit from the EU means that it has been able to take a more tailored approach that reflects the UK’s specific circumstances.

As the pandemic has gone on, the Government is now also keen to encourage recovery. In the Winter 2021/22 Season which will last until 27 March 2022 we have set the usage requirement for slots at 50%. We also gave airlines the option of handing back slot series that they were not intending to use before the season started to allow other airlines to use them.

A draft Statutory Instrument setting out arrangements for Summer 2022 was published on 24 January 2022.

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