Europe's skies were at their busiest ever during the summer holiday period from July to August, despite disruptions caused by the war in West Asia, according to Eurocontrol data published recently.
According to the continent-wide aviation safety body, Europe saw an average of 35,959 flights a day, a 2.4% increase on 2025, with a record 37,640 flights on July 10.
Though Eurocontrol acknowledged that the United States-Iran war “influenced” this year’s tourist season, the conflict has also encouraged many Europeans to holiday within their own continent, widely seen as safer.
“This translated into lower traffic in Bulgaria, Hungary, Romania and Turkiye, but a high increase in traffic in Albania, Croatia, Cyprus, Greece, Montenegro, North Macedonia, Serbia and Slovenia – and continuous growth in southwest Europe,” Eurocontrol said.
Record passenger numbers at Greece’s airports pushed its air traffic control system to the limit, especially during the peak season.
Despite the increase across the continent, 72.6% of flights arrived on time, up 1.2 percentage points on 2025. France remained the worst offender for delays caused by air traffic control management problems, accounting for 32% of all delays on its own. – AFP
