This report is the eighth in a series of joint comparisons between the U.S. and Europe. It represents the fifth edition of the Memorandum of Cooperation (NAT-I-9406A) between the United States and the European Union (EU). The work is managed by the joint Performance Analysis Review Committee (PARC) under the Memorandum. Building on commonly agreed metrics from the previous operational and cost-efficiency comparison reports, the objective of the joint work conducted by the U.S. Air Traffic Organization (FAA-ATO) and EUROCONTROL on behalf of the PARC is to compare, understand, and further improve air traffic management (ATM) performance in both systems.
The outbreak of the COVID-19 pandemic in early 2020 resulted in an unprecedented reduction of air traffic around the globe - with significant effects on the entire aviation industry. Air Navigation Services (ANS) had to adjust operationally and economically as quickly as possible to the reduced demand, whilst ensuring a safe and reliable service to those flights still operating. A first evaluation of the economic and operational impact of the COVID-19 outbreak on the two ATM systems in the U.S and in Europe was provided in a special report in December 2021.
As shown in this special report in 2021, the impact of the pandemic on air traffic was notably different in the U.S. and in Europe due to differences in market composition. The analysis showed that international traffic was much more affected because of the various measures implemented by governments to fight the pandemic. Hence, the impact on air traffic in the U.S. was notably lower because of the large domestic market share (80%) in comparison to Europe (30%).
The recovery phase also showed different patterns. While in the U.S. traffic recovered continuously after the outbreak of the pandemic in March 2020, in Europe, recovery was generally slower but with notably high growth rates in summer.
This report looks at the operational and economic ATM performance in both systems since the outbreak of the pandemic in 2020. Where appropriate, it also follows up on longer-term trends and differences in ATM performance between the U.S. and Europe identified in previous reports.
Russia’s invasion of Ukraine in February 2022 and the unfolding effects of the war also influenced the analyses in this report.
The closure of Ukraine’s airspace to commercial traffic was amplified by reciprocal airspace bans for Russian and many Western operators. This resulted in a cut of many important east-west airways between Europe and Asia for many Western carriers.
While most of the European traffic is not directly affected by the airspace closures, flights originating in Europe or Eastern Asia that previously travelled through Russian airspace need to divert, which adds travel time and fuel burn and in turn lowers flight efficiency. Additionally, there is a direct operational and economic impact on the adjacent Air Navigation Service Providers (ANSPs). To allow for consistency in time series analyses, Ukraine was removed from the scope of the analyses in this report.
This report is the eighth in a series of joint comparisons between the U.S. and Europe. It represents the fifth edition of the Memorandum of Cooperation (NAT-I-9406A) between the United States and the European Union (EU). The work is managed by the joint Performance Analysis Review Committee (PARC) under the Memorandum. Building on commonly agreed metrics from the previous operational and cost-efficiency comparison reports, the objective of the joint work conducted by the U.S. Air Traffic Organization (FAA-ATO) and EUROCONTROL on behalf of the PARC is to compare, understand, and further improve air traffic management (ATM) performance in both systems.
The outbreak of the COVID-19 pandemic in early 2020 resulted in an unprecedented reduction of air traffic around the globe - with significant effects on the entire aviation industry. Air Navigation Services (ANS) had to adjust operationally and economically as quickly as possible to the reduced demand, whilst ensuring a safe and reliable service to those flights still operating. A first evaluation of the economic and operational impact of the COVID-19 outbreak on the two ATM systems in the U.S and in Europe was provided in a special report in December 2021.
As shown in this special report in 2021, the impact of the pandemic on air traffic was notably different in the U.S. and in Europe due to differences in market composition. The analysis showed that international traffic was much more affected because of the various measures implemented by governments to fight the pandemic. Hence, the impact on air traffic in the U.S. was notably lower because of the large domestic market share (80%) in comparison to Europe (30%).
The recovery phase also showed different patterns. While in the U.S. traffic recovered continuously after the outbreak of the pandemic in March 2020, in Europe, recovery was generally slower but with notably high growth rates in summer.
This report looks at the operational and economic ATM performance in both systems since the outbreak of the pandemic in 2020. Where appropriate, it also follows up on longer-term trends and differences in ATM performance between the U.S. and Europe identified in previous reports.
Russia’s invasion of Ukraine in February 2022 and the unfolding effects of the war also influenced the analyses in this report.
The closure of Ukraine’s airspace to commercial traffic was amplified by reciprocal airspace bans for Russian and many Western operators. This resulted in a cut of many important east-west airways between Europe and Asia for many Western carriers.
While most of the European traffic is not directly affected by the airspace closures, flights originating in Europe or Eastern Asia that previously travelled through Russian airspace need to divert, which adds travel time and fuel burn and in turn lowers flight efficiency. Additionally, there is a direct operational and economic impact on the adjacent Air Navigation Service Providers (ANSPs). To allow for consistency in time series analyses, Ukraine was removed from the scope of the analyses in this report.
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