The trade body representing European airports has repeated its call to fix problems caused by the EU Entry/Exit System (EES), saying they are now putting people off travelling.
Since the EES came into force in EU and Schengen areas in April, the extra checks required have caused delays of several hours and have resulted in some passengers missing flights.
Airports Council International Europe (ACI Europe) Director General Olivier Jankovec said: “Fixing the Schengen Entry/Exit System must be Europe’s immediate priority. Long, unpredictable and unacceptable waiting times at border control have started acting as a deterrent to travel – and undermine the standing and reputation of Europe as an efficient and welcoming destination.”
He was speaking as ACI Europe published its air traffic report for June, which revealed passenger traffic across the European airport network increased by 2.6% in the first half of the year, compared to the same period in 2025.
The pace of growth slowed ‘markedly’ in the second quarter, at 1.3%, compared to 4.3% in the first quarter, which ACI said reflected ‘the impact of the war in the Middle East with much decreased traffic to the Region and some airlines cutting capacity in response to higher jet fuel prices’.
“Growth has clearly lost momentum, with passenger traffic stalling – or even declining – in a number of national markets as of June,” Olivier added.
London Heathrow remained the busiest European airport, welcoming a record 40 million passengers – a 0.2% year-on-year increase.
Last month, ACI Europe President Stefan Schulte, who is also Chairman and CEO of Fraport AG, which owns Frankfurt Airport, said the EES was keeping him ‘and other airport CEOs across Europe awake at night’.
See also:
Airline bosses urge Ursula von der Leyen to sort out ‘critical’ EES issues
