The European Committee of the Regions' Commission for Territorial Cohesion Policy and EU Budget (COTER) has adopted an opinion on the future of regional airports. This is a great achievement and an opportunity for all smaller airports – emphasises ECR President Marshal Władysław Ortyl, who presented the document as rapporteur.
The Marshal has opened up a discussion on the future of regional airports and has drawn attention to the threats facing airports: "Airports Council International Europe has warned that 193 airports in Europe are at risk of insolvency in the coming months. Together, these airports account for 277 000 jobs and EUR 12.4 billion in GDP. This group mainly includes regional airports serving local communities. Eurocontrol has estimated that in the most optimistic scenario, air traffic would only return to 2019 levels in 2024, and in the worst-case scenario in 2029," said the Marshal.
Marshal Ortyl stressed the importance of airports in regions' development: "Regional airports play a critical role in EU territorial cohesion, particularly in the case of sparsely populated, peripheral and outermost regions. They also play a key role in the connections that airlines provide for passengers and clients transporting goods within the EU and beyond its borders," he added.
Władysław Ortyl used the example of Rzeszów-Jasionka airport, which attracts investors to the Podkarpackie region: "The airport at Jasionka is one of Poland's leading regional airports, serving up to one million passengers per year. The airport's development has not only attracted business and services, but has also led, over the last decade, to a significant increase in investor interest in the area surrounding the airport," said Mr Ortyl.
The Marshal also referred to the links between aviation and the European Green Deal, while pointing out the opportunities for airports for co-financing under the European Union's new financial perspective: "Aviation and regional airports must contribute to the EU's decarbonisation objectives, including by using alternative fuels and improving intermodality, particularly air-rail connections. It is necessary to provide EU funds, in the context of cohesion policy for 2021-27, to co-finance investments in regional airports that directly support processes relating to decarbonisation and the low-carbon circular economy model. Additionally, regional airports should be given the opportunity to draw on EU funding under the country and regional programmes to be introduced in the new European Union financial perspective for 2021-2027," he said.
The next step will be a vote on the opinion at the European Committee of the Regions' plenary session in July.