The COVID-19 pandemic led to unprecedented disruption in global aviation, forcing the ANS industry to adapt quickly to low levels of traffic and revenue. As the report demonstrates, it exposed the challenges for ANSPs and other ANS stakeholders in making decisions amid high uncertainty on traffic recovery. By 2021, the cumulative drop in revenue compared to 2019 amounted to some €11 billion, therefore bridging the revenue gap was a primary concern, with ANSPs relying heavily on cash reserves and access to loan financing. Measures containing cost and capex were also implemented, some of which, while necessary at the time, later proved to constrain recovery and capacity redeployment. In contrast, greater flexibility in workforce management and operations, as well as a good level of interaction amongst local and European stakeholders, was essential in adapting to the crisis.
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