Airlines
A4E Renews Call To Prolong Slot Rule Waiver Through March
The airline group asserts that the ongoing Covid-19 crisis and its impact on demand justify their demand to freeze their slot portfolios.

Airlines for Europe (A4E) is urging the European Commission to promptly extend the dispensation of the 80/20 use-it-or-lose-it slot rule for the entire winter season, calling its plea “totally justifiable” given the ongoing uncertainty of Covid-19 on travel restrictions and the recovery of demand. Speaking to media on Wednesday, A4E chairman and Air France-KLM CEO Ben Smith asserted that the gradually built-up slot portfolios stand as the “bedrock of the business models of our members. We bought airplanes based on slots being available.”