Responding to the urgent need for medical, cargo and repatriation flights, FABEC air navigation service providers (ANSPs) rapidly put in place COVID-safe measures to provide critical airspace infrastructure and ensure safe and timely flights. Air traffic services continued uninterrupted despite airline fee deferrals and the new staff procedures. In addition, military flight operations have been conducted throughout the year.
While FABEC total traffic fell below volumes previously handled at the end of the last century, FABEC ANSPs used the downturn to implement efficiency measures including more direct, shorter routes and improved vertical flight profiles. Total en-route air traffic flow management delay fell 88.6%, and the airport arrival delay fell 82.5% as FABEC ANSPs responded flexibly to the schedule disruption.