EXPLANATORY STATEMENT of the EU on the future of regional airports and air services in the EU which brought to the Resolution (2011/2196(INI))
Regional airports and air services are not only essential as transport nodes, helping to facilitate the smooth running of the EU’s single market by moving people and goods between regions, but they are also essential as generators of economic growth in their own right. Together they expand the horizon of traditional trading routes and provide a significant boost to the cities and regions that they serve. Given the importance of these infrastructures and services to people living outside major urban areas and to the EU as a whole, your Rapporteur is greatly concerned that when proposing legislation in the field of aviation, there is a tendency by the European Commission to focus attentions on major ‘hub airports’. In this report I have presented recommendations that seek to redress this balance and bring attention to the manner in which regional airports and air services have often been unintentionally, yet disproportionately, affected by some EU legislation. I have also opened for discussion, policy options that if adopted by the Commission could improve the operational and economic efficiency of regional airports and air services as well as improve the experience of passengers using these facilities and services.
I have already stated in my introduction that regional airports make a major economic contribution to society and as such, I have found it striking how difficult it is to find a single, coherent definition as to what constitutes a regional airport. I have spoken with the Commission as well as Industry stakeholders and yet, I have been offered many inadequate, contradictory and often competing definitions. If the Commission is to ensure that it addresses the needs of the EU’s many regional airports in the future, then I believe that it needs a clear, concrete, coherent and precise definition for regional airports. There are very many regional airports scattered across the EU and they differ greatly in size, the services they provide, the markets they serve and the air services that serve their airports. For this reason, definitions that simply set an arbitrary passenger threshold or include any airports outside of capital cities/regions will prove inadequate. Given that no adequate definition currently exists, your Rapporteur has chosen for the purpose of this report to offer a simple, broad definition in which a regional airport is defined as any “non-hub” airport (regardless of passenger throughput) and regional air service as an air service that departs and/or lands at a regional airport.
Aviation is an industry of small margins and as such it is vital that we create an EU aviation area that is strong, competitive and economically viable. This is especially true at a regional level where the margins can be smallest. In addition to the economic barriers we are confronted with, we also face obstacles related to aviation’s impact on the environment, congestion, security, as well as a need to better define its essential contribution to the EU transport network. As such, your Rapporteur has tried to touch on all of these key areas and address not only regional aviation specific issues, but also means by which regional aviation can play a role in creating a more efficient EU aviation area as a whole. For example, I believe that those regional airports that are currently running below capacity could conceivably serve as congestion relievers to some heavily congested hub airports, especially for regional services. If implemented properly, this could lead to less congestion and more environmental efficiency. Similarly, in dealing with slots, I would call on the Commission to pay special attention to regional airports and air services as they risk being priced out of the market in the face of greater consolidation amongst major airports, airlines and airline alliances. An uncompetitive and monopolistic market place would not only be extremely harmful to regional aviation but also to EU citizens who would be faced with less choice and rising prices.
I have also called for the Commission and Member States to speed up the development of SESAR and the Single European Sky as a matter of urgency, as their completion could lead to huge economic and environment savings brought about by greater efficiency as well as allowing some smaller regional airports to benefit from SESAR projects such as remote towers. Furthermore I believe that greater efficiencies could be brought to the EU Transport area by including some major regional airports into the TEN-T core network. Indeed I strongly believe that regional air services need to be seen as an integral part of the network rather than peripheral to the TEN-T network. Your Rapporteur believes that by better integrating our regional airports into the transport network we can encourage industry to bring additional benefits for EU citizens, such as developing multi-modal through ticketing between the rail and air sectors of a journey.
Lastly, I have tried to deal with issues surrounding transparency which can impact greatly on the experience of passengers, but also on the freedom of regional airports to choose a revenue rich economic model. This report aims to tackle practices by certain low cost carriers’ such as the well publicised practice of adding certain unavoidable charges onto the headline price of their air tickets, or imposing extremely strict and onerous “one bag” rules which can seriously threaten the viability of retail sales as a source of airport revenue for regional airports that have often negotiated competitive landing charges in order to attract airlines.
In conclusion, I strongly believe that European regional airports and air services need to be considered as key elements in creating an efficient and well functioning EU transport network that facilitates trade and ensures mobility for a greater number of people. Regional aviation can play a vital role in ensuring that free movement in the EU is a reality not only for people living in major capital cities but also for EU citizens living outside of these areas, ensuring that these cities and regions enjoy not only the benefits brought about by greater mobility but also by generating tourism, providing access to new markets and by attracting greater inward economic investment.