EU Matters

ACI EUROPE Annual Assembly: New economic and operational realities

ACI EUROPE Annual Assembly: New economic and operational realities

The 21st ACI EUROPE Annual Assembly, Congress and Exhibition, this year hosted by ANA Aeroportos de Portugal, took place in Lisbon from 15 to 17 June. The event featured a broad range of high-level speakers, addressing the central theme of ‘Overcoming new economic and operational realities, while improving the passenger experience’. Ross Falconer reports.

Harmonising the response to volcanic ash crises

The eruption of the Grimsvötn volcano in May resulted in the activation of the European Aviation Crisis Coordination Cell (EACCC) by the European Commission and EUROCONTROL for the first time. Following the positive impact of this inaugural activation, Ryan Ghee explores how, along with the adoption of new technology, the EACCC can help to lessen the impact of future crisis situations.

Transport 2050: Infrastructure drives mobility

The European Commission recently published its ‘Roadmap for the Future of Transport 2050’ – a comprehensive strategy for a competitive transport system, with the ambitious aim of creating a Single European Transport Area. Ross Falconer & Robert O’Meara report.

Airports and social media: An ACI EUROPE report

More and more of Europe’s airports are putting social media at the heart of their communications strategies as they respond to new competitive realities, but the manner in which social media is employed differs from airport to airport. Donagh Cagney looks at a newly-published ACI EUROPE report which explores this emerging trend.

Grimsvötn eruption shows lessons learned

Just over one year on from the Eyjafjallajökull eruption in April 2010, a second Icelandic volcanic shock occurred on 21 May with the eruption of the Grimsvötn volcano. A swift response, including activation of the European Aviation Crisis Coordination Cell (EACCC) by the European Commission and EUROCONTROL, ensured that the impact was significantly less than the Eyjafjallajökull eruption. Ross Falconer & Robert O’Meara report.