Here are eight takeaways from the Airlines for Europe conference which took place in Brussels yesterday.
The event featured a first ever appearance at the event by the European commissioner, Apostolos Tzitzikostas EU Transport Commissioner, who told the aviation delegates “you have aplae at the table.”
- Consolidation is racing apace, the big question, with three large groups hovering up the remaining independents and IAG talking of selling its stake in Air Europe to a low Af/KLM and Lufthansa to move in. The next big question: will there be a marriage between Easyjet and Wizz Air?
- The election of Donald Trump has increased fossil fuel production and raised doubts about SAF in the USA, is not being produced at the pace that European aviation requires.
- The single European sky, still rumbling on with no progress
- Major airports across Europe are describing the havoc at Heathrow last Friday as a wake up call for everyone.
- The race to return to Ukraine is on between Ryanair and Air Baltic
- There is a direct correlation between connectivity and GDP, a 10pc increase in air connectivity leads to an 0.5pc increase in GDP
- Germany is lagging behind in terms of aviation and has not yet recovered to pre pandemic levesl Spain is roaring ahead.
- European aviation is responsible tor 6pc of total European jobs.
