The report provides an overview of the European ATM network performance in 2024. It analyses the results in light of the main events that took place in the course of the year.
Thanks to the significant efforts made by operational stakeholders – airspace users, ANSPs, airports, military, ground handlers, States and EUROCONTROL's Network Manager, and considering the robust plan that had been agreed, there was an increase in punctuality, stability, predictability and capacity in the European aviation network in the first part of the year. As a result of this joint work and cooperation, the clear common objective of making 2024 a manageable year was on track. However, Summer 2024’s operational complexities and the significant increase in traffic proved to be very challenging.
There were 10.7 million flights in the network in 2024, 4.9% more than 2023 (on average 1,160 more daily flights). Traffic continued to recover from the COVID-19 pandemic, although the network was still strongly impacted by the Russian invasion in Ukraine and the security situation in the Middle East.
En-route ATFM delay was 2.1 minutes per flight in 2024, which is well above the network SES target. Although the vast majority of the ANSPs fulfilled their commitments made in the NOP, structural en-route capacity shortage remains. With the introduction of the Rolling NOP and four joint priorities, significant improvements were achieved compared with 2023. Weather hit operations hard this summer particularly in July. The network response to weather still has room for improvement.
NM estimates that aircraft burned 35.3 million tonnes of fuel in NM en-route airspace in 2024 – 111.5 million tonnes of CO2. Ukrainian airspace closure since February 2022 has impacted flight efficiency significantly. In addition, the security situation in the Middle East created inefficiencies at the interface of NM.