Commission of the European Communities (2006). An action plan for airport capacity, efficiency and safety in Europe, Communication from the Commission to the Council, The European parliament, The European Economic and Social Committee and the Committee of the Regions, 2006

An action plan for airport capacity, efficiency and safety in Europe

1. The liberalisation of the European air transport sector is a major success: air traffic in Europe has tripled between 1980 and 2000. Between 1992 and 2005 the number of intra-EU routes has increased by 150%. European citizens can now enjoy a diversified range of air services at an affordable price. Concrete measures have been taken by the European Community in order to sustain this growth whilst maintaining a high level of safety and efficiency:
   • The European Aviation Safety Agency (EASA) was created in 2002 in order to rationalise European activities in the field of air worthiness;
   • The Single European Sky legislative package adopted in 2004 aims at comprehensively reforming of the Air Traffic Management sector, with a view to increasing the safety and efficiency of the European sky.
2. If demand for air traffic continues in line with current trends, it will double in 20 years. This will clearly have serious environmental implications. The Commission is addressing this issue with a series of initiatives aimed at internalising the external costs of transport and at reducing the air transport contribution to the greenhouse The mid-term review of the Commission's 2001 Transport White Paper recognises that measures are needed to reduce the negative environmental effects caused by the rapid growth of traffic. The aim of this document is to optimise the use of existing infrastructure, promote the use of technological developments, to improve safety and efficiency, and to improve the planning framework of new infrastructure when it is needed.
3. In a modern society connectivity is the basis for economic competitiveness, social and regional cohesion and cultural development. Consequently, not only do the economic and commercial needs of globalisation drive the growing demand for air transport, but the demand for air travel is also boosted by evolving societal and cultural needs.
4. After liberalising the air transport market by the creation of the internal market and addressing the "saturation of the skies" through the Single European Sky initiative, the Commission will now focus on airports. Capacity will not be able to match demand and risks becoming the most constraining factor on air transport. The knock-on network effects of this weakest link threatens the efficiency of the whole air transport chain. Since air transport is seen as a 'motor' for economic growth, this in turn risks undermining the overall competitiveness of the European economy.
5. Airports are of significant economic importance, both on a local and global scale. While the operators of Europe's airports directly employ some 120,000 staff to serve 580 million passengers per year, the total on-site employment of airline, maintenance, catering, retailing and air traffic control company's amount to some 1.1 million workers.