Europe has announced that it is suspending the ‘use it or lose it’ rule for airline slots until March 2021, providing much needed relief for the struggling airline industry.
The ‘use it or lose it’ rule requires that carriers use at least 80% of their takeoff and landing positions or risk losing them the following year.
European Union governments and the bloc’s Parliament cleared the commission’s decision to waive the rule until March 27, 2021.
The 27-nation EU’s goal is to avoid a scenario in which empty planes fly routes just so operators can retain their slots, which are worth millions of dollars.
The UK, whose Brexit transition period runs out at year-end, has said it will continue to apply EU rules on slot allocation until the government creates its own system.
