By Nick Careen, IATA Senior Vice President, Operations, Safety and Security
An airport slot is critical. And at many airports there are not enough slots to fulfill the demand for travel at all times of the day. That’s why airlines, airports, and regulators worked together to create the Worldwide Airport Slot Guidelines (WASG).
WASG provides the rules by which slots are allocated. And, because nobody wants such a precious resource as airport capacity to go under-utilized, the WASG also provides the rules by which a slot can be reallocated. This is the famous 80-20 rule. Basically, a slot must be used 80% of the time for an airline to keep it. The 20% non-utilization provides flexibility for cancellations for things like weather events or mechanical issues.
Of course, when all is normal, airlines use their slots to the fullest—that’s how they do business. And the system, while not perfect, works well. There are times, however, when circumstances change so dramatically that extra flexibility is needed. Recall the COVID-19 pandemic when governments shut down their borders and prevented people from flying. It would have been unfair to penalize airlines for not using their slots when they were literally unable to fly.
The WASG has provisions for this called the Justified Non-Use of Slots (JNUS) exemption. Essentially the utilization calculation is frozen until the extraordinary situation normalizes, and airlines could reasonably be expected to operate their schedules.
The war in the Middle East is another situation where JNUS needs to be applied. Over the last month we have seen headlines about closed airspace, reduced operations at some airports, major re-routing to avoid conflict zones, and fuel shortages. For many airlines it has been impossible to operate their carefully planned schedules. At the time of writing, this has been going on for a month and a half. And that goes beyond the flexibility afforded by the normal 80-20 rule.
And even if the war ends today—which we all hope for—remedies for airline schedules will not be immediate. Some airlines have made pre-emptive cancellations to give passengers time to plan around the disruptions. And re-starting operations will take time for aircraft and crews to re-position, schedules to be rebuilt, and fuel supplies replenished, and networks need time to recover. Getting back to normal will take months, not days.
That’s why airlines are asking for governments to apply JNUS for a rolling six-week period until it is clear that normal operations are possible. This will give airlines something they urgently need right now: the certainty that their network—and all the years of investments to support it—is not in peril because of circumstances beyond their control.
And that’s not all. Implementing JNUS has broader implications:
All this adds up a situation that will enable airlines to restore connectivity as fast as possible when the situation stabilizes. That will be in everybody’s interest.
Not only is JNUS written into the rules, we also have practical experience to guide slot coordinators (experts who administrate WASG at airports) in applying JNUS to the best effect.
We all hope that JNUS will not be needed for long. The faster this war ends, the better. IATA will continue to keep governments—who have the power to invoke JNUS—fully informed of the extraordinary challenges that airlines are facing. Until the situation stabilizes and airlines can return to normal flying, JNUS is a critical lifeline to protect the air connectivity that is important today, and that will be even more important as we rebuild from conflict.
> Find more information on JNUS
