NATO Air Defender 2023

30 May 2023: NATO is organising a military exercise Air Defender 23 (AD23) on 12-22 June in Germany. Therefore, some areas of the German airspace will be closed to airlines.

On 25 May, ERA attended a meeting organised by the European Commission DGAC with key aviation stakeholders, including EUROCONTRL Network Management, in preparation for Summer 2023. Potential issues due to the AD23 were discussed as well. Please see attached the information that was shared among the participants.

ERA welcomed that the Network Management expressed that airlines do not need to proceed with a cancellation programme nor that cancellations are foreseen to be required. This was of the utmost importance, given airlines only had a few days left before the two-week deadline (29 May) to avoid the obligations arising from Regulation No. 261/2004.

Germany made it clear that AD23 will be recognised by German National Enforcement Bodies (NEBs) as an extraordinary circumstance.

However, claims may be filed by passengers in a country other than Germany. Therefore, ERA is asking for a statement from the European Commission calling on NEBs to align their approach to consider AD23 as an extraordinary circumstance under Regulation No. 261/2004. An alignment among NEBs is key to be prepared for every eventuality and mitigate any unnecessary additional reputational damage. Such an alignment will also enable us to prevent that claim agencies will use this opportunity not only to encourage passengers to submit claims and take action against airlines, but also to set a precedent where the closure of airspace cannot be considered an extraordinary event.

Moreover, ERA calls on ANSPs and airports to ensure maximum flexibility and capacity throughout the AD23 period. We also call on slot co-ordinators for additional flexibility in rescheduling slots and tactical cancellations, should the situation be worse than anticipated, and on Member States to allow for extended curfews in all airports (not just Germany) if delays have a cascading effect on the network.