Airlines
Airlines and Airports Call for Extended Slot Rule Flexibility
The Worldwide Slot Board says air transport cannot recover from the Covid-19 pandemic without changes to "use-them-or-loose-them" slot allocation rules.
Almost half of all airline passengers travel through slot-regulated airports like Amsterdam Schiphol. (Photo: Amsterdam Schiphol Airport)
Almost half of all airline passengers travel through slot-regulated airports like Amsterdam Schiphol. (Photo: Amsterdam Schiphol Airport)

Airports, airlines, and slot allocation coordinators have called for waivers covering the use of slots to be extended through the end of the 2021 northern hemisphere summer season so that carriers will not be forced to give up slots they cannot use due to the continued slump in demand for flights. On Thursday, the Worldwide Slot Board (WASB), comprising the Airports Council International, the International Air Transport Association and the Worldwide Airport Coordinators Group, also urged regulators to temporarily introduce more flexible slot rules that the industry bodies say are needed to maintain “essential air transport connectivity” in the wake of the Covid-19 pandemic.