August 9, 2025

India is raising a strong voice at the International Civil Aviation Organization (ICAO) to fix unfair rules about airport slots at big European airports. What are airport slots? These are special permissions that airlines must have to land and take off at busy airports during certain times. India’s working paper to ICAO says the current system is bad for airlines from developing countries like India, which struggle to get slots at crowded airports. A major problem is the “grandfather rights” system. It lets airlines that already have slots keep them forever, even if they don't use them fully. This blocks new airlines from getting these valuable slots. Airports like London Heathrow, Amsterdam, and Paris follow slot rules where airlines keep a slot if they use it at least 80% of the time each season. But this mostly helps big airlines from developed countries and denies other airlines a fair chance. The paper says, "This often means that carriers from large source markets like India are unable to deploy new capacity at commercially viable timings, while countries operating such hubs continue to seek increased access to the Indian market without offering reciprocal benefits." In simple words, Indian airlines find it hard to fly at good times in Europe, while European airlines fly with ease to India. India’s own big airlines like IndiGo and Air India are growing fast and want to fly more internationally. But IndiGo is stuck because Dutch authorities plan to limit flights to reduce noise. This means IndiGo’s requests for winter slots in Amsterdam hang in the air. Meanwhile, Indian airports are building new facilities, but European ones are cutting down flight options. India’s paper notes, "developed economies, like Amsterdam, are actively reducing existing capacity creating an unequal playing field that inherently favours legacy carriers from developed nations." The issue is also seen between India and the UK. Despite nice agreements, Indian airlines mostly fly to second-choice London airports like Gatwick and Stansted, while UK airlines get prime slots at Heathrow. Even though a 2023 deal lets airlines increase flights from 56 to 70 per week at Heathrow, Air India flies 31 times weekly there and must start new flights from less popular airports. IndiGo might have to pay big money to lease slots from UK airlines to get into Heathrow. An official from the Airports Coordination agency at Heathrow told ET, "Access to slots is independent of bilateral entitlements." They explained that no new slots are available, so airlines must wait for others to lose theirs or buy slots from them. India’s call to ICAO is a push to rewrite the slot rules. It urges the international body to "preserve the integrity of the international civil aviation system and ensure that all states can realise the benefits of their participation in international air services." Will ICAO crack this tough nut and make flying fair for India’s airlines? The coming assembly in Montreal this September will decide.

Read More at Economictimes →

Tags: Icao, Airport slots, Indian airlines, European airports, Aviation regulations, Slot allocation,