Athens Airport to Become High-performing Hub in European Air Traffic Management Network

The European Commission has approved the co-funding of Athens International Airport S.A. (AIA) for its evolution into a high-performing hub within the European Air Traffic Management Network.

According to an announcement, AIA is the first time Greek airport to be selected by the European Union under the “Connecting Europe Facility – Transport Sector” program, which concerns the EU’s priority for the creation of the “Single European Sky” (SESAR).

The aim of the EU grant is to enable Athens Airport to develop and implement new and advanced concepts for airport operations, airport resources management and information sharing in order to enhance its operational efficiency in the serving of the traffic and make optimum use of the available capacity on ground and in the air.

“The implementation of this program is fully in line with AIA’s strategy to create sustainable development conditions and for the operation of the airport as a responsible operator and prudent manager and stakeholder,” AIA Chief Operations Officer Alexandros Aravanis said.

Moreover, new functionalities will be implemented, in line with the emerging airport needs and the latest international airports trends and best practices, thus addressing the increasing operational and quality standards of AIA.

“It (the program) will result in an improved efficiency of the airport community, with beneficial effects and positive impacts on increasing the overall efficiency/performance of the European Air Traffic Management Network,” Aravanis added.

Expected benefits for passengers, AIA, the airport community, the Mesogaia region and the Greek economy include reductions of flight delays, taxi-out time savings, reduction of the environmental footprint (fuel consumption and reduction of CO2 emissions), increased operational predictability and improved overall passenger experience.

The program will be implemented through six interrelated projects extending over a five-year period (2019-2023).