At the end of March EUROCONTROL, as Network Manager, published its latest seven year forecast for flights over Europe. The 1.5% growth that was seen in 2015 is expected to strengthen in 2016 and to reach a rate of above 2% (in the European Civil Aviation Conference, ECAC, area). Amongst the factors contributing to this is an expected increase in the demand in Iberia and Greece, leading to strong growth rates for these countries during Summer. These countries are preferred by air travellers, still staying away from North African destinations. The low-cost sector is expected to continue to be dynamic, with new aircraft for some operators. Traffic patterns in the Eastern part of Europe are still subject to changes in relation to tensions in Ukraine and the Russian Federation.

The forecast, 102 pages, is available here.