The European Commission has published a study which suggests that congestion at larger airports could be tackled by improving the way landing and take-off slots are managed. The study shows that Europe’s busiest hubs could cope with an additional 28 million passengers each year without having to undertake expansion programmes to their runways. The EC [...]

International Air Transport Association director general, Giovanni Bisignani, is calling on European governments to agree on a unified response to the threat of airspace closure by volcanic ash clouds. He admitted that the authorities were coping much better with the current threat from an Icelandic eruption than they did just over a year ago, but [...]

Extra charges added to the price of airline tickets could soon be banned by the European Commission as it undertakes a comprehensive review of passengers’ rights. The EC is reacting to a raft of complaints made by watchdogs and customers about the level of airline surcharges. Consumer guardian Which? has contacted the Office of Fair [...]

Security checks at airports throughout the UK are likely to become tighter following the death of Al Qaeda leader Osama bin Laden in Pakistan. There is concern that his killing could spark retaliatory attacks, and airports are being seen as an obvious target. According to Whitehall sources, scanners could now be introduced across the country [...]

The US government has announced that it is revising the compensation rules which apply to passengers who are delayed or bumped from their flight. The new legislation will also require airlines to be more transparent about their fees. Ray LaHood, the US transport secretary, said the new rules would support a passenger’s right to be [...]

The Easter bank holiday weekend has arrived with the usual warnings of travel chaos. The AA estimates that 18 million motorists will get behind the wheel and that this will result in the inevitable congestion and traffic jams. Airports will also be busier than usual as one million Brits head off on a foreign holiday. [...]

The European Commission has been asked to insist that airlines adhere to equality rules as an increasing number of passengers who use a wheelchair are not being allowed onto flights. The matter came to a head recently when Shuaib Chalklen, a disability rights monitor for the UN, was told he would not be allowed to [...]

Legislation which protects passengers if their flight is grounded is to be reviewed by the European Commission. Vice President Siim Kallas announced the decision to re-examine regulation 261 after increased pressure from the aviation industry. The law states that if a plane is grounded then a passenger holding a ticket for that flight is allowed [...]

Following the massive earthquake and tsunami which devastated much of the north of Japan last month, British Airways said it would continue to run a full schedule to the country. International Consolidated Airlines Group chief executive, Willie Walsh, has since said he is keen to develop plans for greater cooperation between the flag-carrier and Japan [...]

Transport Secretary Philip Hammond has said that although the government would support growth in the airline industry it would not do so at the detriment of the environment. He explained that airlines needed to make more of an effort to become greener, not only by reducing carbon emissions, but also through reducing the amount of [...]