Aim to help carriers cut capacity
The Association of European Airlines (AEA) has had informal talks with the European Union about suspending the 80-20 slots rule at congested airports.
The Association said it wanted to help carriers cut capacity during the economic downturn without fear of losing "highly valuable" slots at congested airports like Heathrow, Schiphol, CDG and Frankfurt.
Under the rule, airlines must use slots allocated to them for at least 80% of the time or there is a danger that the airport will take them away.
If an airline is allocated 100 slots to fly from A to B, it must fly at least 80 times to ensure keeping that slot.
The rule was drafted by the International Air Transport Association "many years ago", according to the AEA.
A spokesman for the AEA said: "We have had informal talks, not formal negotiations, with the EU.
"We are not negotiating about changing the rule but for not implementing it for a given time so airlines can cut their capacity without running the risk of losing their slots."
The move comes as airlines across Europe are trying to reduce capacity as demand slumps during the economic downturn.
AEA members include major European carriers like Lufthansa, Air France KLM and BA.
www.aea.be