By 2035, airports across Europe will be unable to accommodate the estimated 2 million flights due to capacity shortages, according to Eurocontrol, the European organisation for the safety of air navigation.
The economic cost of being unable to meet the demand is estimated at up to 818 000 jobs lost and an annual loss in GDP of between EUR€28 billion and EUR€52bn, the European Commission said.
It announced measures to boost the aviation sector but faced criticism for not encouraging member states to do more to boost airport capacity.
This was highlighted by decades of wrangling over airport expansion in south-east England, and the latest moves by Britain to delay - once again - a decision on where to build an additional runway to serve the London area.
At the same time, other countries across the continent have dragged their heels on airport capacity, not least because of opposition from local residents to noise and over environmental concerns.
This means that Europe is failing to keep up with emerging countries when it comes to creating vital airport capacity – with the likes of China and the Middle East pushing ahead with ambitious airport expansion plans.
