Holidaymakers face the worst air-traffic control delays in a quarter century
Summer holidaymakers in 2024 experienced the worst air-traffic control delays since 2001 – and aviation heavyweights have warned that this coming summer will be even worse.
The Independent has analysed the Eurocontrol Performance Review Report for 2024, which reveals some shocking delays – partly attributable to staff shortages at European air-traffic control facilities.
During the main summer months of June, July and August, one in three flights arrived more than 15 minutes late. Adverse weather causes many of the delays, but a shortage of air-traffic controls is also blamed.
Dr Peter Whysall, who conducted the review for Eurocontrol, called the constraints “a cause for concern” and said performance is “likely to get worse unless structural issues are addressed”.
With 300 million passengers expected to fly to or from UK airports during 2025, it is likely that 100 million will arrive a quarter-hour or more behind schedule – jeopardising connections, eroding time on holiday and adding to pressure on airlines.
On the eve of the start of the summer schedules, which begin on Sunday, the Ryanair chief executive told The Independent: “It will be worse than last summer, particularly at weekends.
“Europe needs to fix what is a broken air traffic control system which we pay ridiculously expensive fees for.
“We and our customers are facing increasing ATC [air-traffic control] delays. They have increased by 50 per cent since Covid in the last five years.
“I wouldn’t object to those higher fees if we were getting an acceptable service. And yet last year, in 2024, we suffered record ATC delays.
“Major ANSP [air-navigation service providers] providers all over Europe have admitted to us that they are understaffed and that the ATC delays this summer will be worse than they were last summer.
“So we’re paying increased fees for a service that’s broke. It’s unacceptable.”
Pilots are accustomed to being told that they must wait on the ground because of restrictions at certain “Area Control Centres” (ACCs), due to lack of staff.
Eurocontrol has revealed the worst offenders, together with the proportion of delays:
- Karlsruhe 13.1 per cent
- Budapest 12.9 per cent
- Marseille 7 per cent
- Zagreb 6.5 per cent
- Reims 6 per cent.
In addition, the UK’s two busiest airports – London Heathrow and Gatwick – have the highest additional “Arrival Sequencing and Metering” times due to their lack of capacity. They are respectively the busiest two-runway and single-runway airports in the world.
At Heathrow, queueing for arrival averages seven-and-a-half minutes, and at Gatwick six minutes.
The European Commission says: “Insufficient airspace capacity, as seen in recent years, leads to long delays and difficulties for passengers.
“These delays affect the efficiency of the entire air transport system. Delays are the cause of additional costs for airlines, and they increase the sector’s carbon footprint with additional emissions from aircraft flying more fuel-inefficient routes.”
Mr O’Leary even ventured that a popular flight-tracking service could help out. “Flightradar24 could provide most of the air-traffic control service across Europe f***ing free of charge,” he said.
Nats, the UK air-traffic control service, declined to comment on the remark.
