Regulation (EU) 2022/2038 amending Council Regulation (EEC) No 95/93 as regards temporary relief from the slot utilisation rules at Union airports due to an epidemiological situation or military aggression

Summary:

Regulation (EU) 2022/2038 - formally adopted by the co-legislators on 19 October 2022 - introducing amendments to Council Regulation (EEC) No 95/93 concerning the slot utilisation rules at airports of the European Union (EU)  due to an epidemiological situation or military aggression. This is a text with EEA relevance.

Further information:

Regulation (EEC) No 95/93 - also known as the Slot Regulation - sets the rules on the allocation of slots at EU airports. Its Article 10 contains a use-it-or-lose-it rule, whereby air carriers must use at least 80% of their allocated slots within a given scheduling period in order to keep precedence in respect of the same series of slots within the corresponding scheduling period of the next year (so-called grandfather rights).

This Regulation aims to allow the airline slot regime to respond more flexibly to unexpected developments in the near future. The draft law was adopted by the European Commission on 12 July 2022, drawing from the COVID-19 (coronavirus) pandemic when there was a significant decline in air traffic worldwide. Airlines could no longer comply with the normal use-it-or-lose-it rule without risking significant financial or environmental harm. The EU temporarily amended the Slot Regulation twice to adjust this rule by adopting Regulation (EU) 2020/459 and Regulation (EU) 2021/250. The draft law later contemplated further exceptions to address the impact of Russia's invasion of Ukraine.

The European Parliament adopted its position on this file on 6 October, which was endorsed by Member State representatives on 12 October. The co-legislators signed the Act on 19 October 2022, which was published in the Official Journal on 25 October 2022.

Official

EUR-LEX: COM(2022)334: Proposal for a Regulation amending Council Regulation (EEC) No 95/93 as regards temporary relief from the slot utilisation rules at Community airports due to the COVID-19 pandemic https://eur-lex.europa.eu/legal-content/EN/ALL/?uri=COM:2022:334:FIN

European Parliament: Legislative Observatory: Procedure File for Proposal on Temporary relief from the slot utilisation rules at Community airports due to the COVID-19 pandemic (2022/0214(COD)) https://oeil.secure.europarl.europa.eu/oeil/popups/ficheprocedure.do?lang=en&reference=2022/0214(COD)

European Parliament: Legislative Train Schedule: Allocation of Slots at EU Airports: Common Rules - Recast https://www.europarl.europa.eu/legislative-train/theme-a-europe-fit-for-the-digital-age/file-allocation-of-slots-at-eu-airports-common-rules-recast

European Commission: Press Release, 12/07/2022: Airline slots: Commission proposes more flexible exceptions regime and targeted relief to airlines https://ec.europa.eu/commission/presscorner/detail/en/ip_22_4473

Council of the European Union: Press Release, 12/10/2022: Member States agree on a temporary waiver from slot rules at EU airports https://www.consilium.europa.eu/en/press/press-releases/2022/10/12/member-states-agree-on-a-temporary-waiver-from-slot-rules-at-eu-airports/

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News

Reuters, 12/10/2022: EU extends airport slot rule waiver through winter https://www.reuters.com/world/europe/eu-extends-airport-slot-rule-waiver-through-winter-2022-10-12/

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Commentary and Analysis

EPRS: Blog, 03/10/2022: Slot utilisation at airports – Parliament decides on a further update https://epthinktank.eu/2022/10/03/slot-utilisation-at-airports-parliament-decides-on-a-further-update/

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