The Network Operations Report 2025 provides a comprehensive of overview of 2025 network performance, highlighting the key conclusions and the issues that the EUROCONTROL Network Manager (NM) and the wider stakeholder community need to address going forward.
The performance in 2025 was much better than both 2024 and 2023. Network actors observed a more stable operating environment compared to 2024 with better stability in the delivery of the planned and executed capacity. Trust in the network was restored.
This demonstrates the clear operational benefits of improved planning, coordination and consistent network procedures being applied across European airspace by the EUROCONTROL Network Manager (NM) and operational actors, with additional support from national governments and authorities. Coordinated actions for improved and focused technology support for the operations, also contributed significantly to the better operational performance in 2025, underlining the strong link between operations and technology with the need to continue the efforts on harmonised and accelerated implementation of new technologies (data link, ATM system developments, new iNM functionalities, etc.).
The growth of the European air traffic in 2025 was 4.3% in the NM Area. This growth was supported by consistently strong daily activity, with the network averaging over 30,000 flights per day, and by a summer season (May-August) that reached an average of 35,122 flights per day, up 3% from summer 2024. Growth varied across Europe, showing clear differences between axes. Traffic on the Southeast axis grew particularly strongly, showing double-digit increases at many ACCs and making this axis one of the main contributors to the network’s year-on-year expansion. In contrast, the Southwest axis grew more moderately, although still contributing positively to the overall increase.
To this significant traffic increase, other complexities are to be considered: the non-availability of the Ukrainian airspace due to the Russian war of aggression in Ukraine, the significant instability from mid-June in the Middle East and the significant increase of military requirements for more intensive training, national and multi-national military exercises as well as the requests for more airspace related to the introduction of fifth generation fighter aircraft.