Ghost flights: What's the secret of empty planes?
Huge passenger planes fly empty over these countries without passengers. What's the secret behind these 'ghost planes'?
According to reports, thousands more planes are likely to take off in the same manner before the end of winter.
At least some of the passengers may be wondering what is driving the airlines to these empty flights that have suffered heavy losses. The Covid 19 epidemic itself is the cause of this.
According to The Bulletin dot B, Europe's restrictions on Covid 19 are behind these ghost flights. In order for an airline to maintain its 'slots', that is, the time slots that allow it to depart or disembark at a certain time, they usually have to serve at least 80% of its scheduled flights.
But due to the coronavirus pandemic and restrictions, it has dropped to 50 per cent. This means that even if there is no one on the plane, the plane should take off at the scheduled place, even if there are no passengers.
Failure to do so will result in loss of airline rights to operate the aircraft. At the same time, critics call these restrictions and these eruptions "economic and environmental nonsense."
Brussels, meanwhile, is calling for a relaxation of airline rules. A spokesman said: "We are currently seeing a sharp drop in bookings, especially in european destinations, even in places where there is usually a lot of business, but we know those flights will resume soon, so we definitely need to keep those slots."
Waldo Sardan, a former airline pilot, told the Belgian media RTBF that the 'slot rule' came into being in the 1990s as a way to ensure airport efficiency and organize air traffic.
According to the law, the airport authorities can organize activities in such a way that as many airlines or planes as possible arrive at the airport without creating any disruption. There is competition between companies for slots and that they are valuable.
The allocation of slots is checked by an authority in each country every year. Talks will be held between the airline companies and the authorities of various airports for this.
Airlines can retain existing slots and claim new ones according to certain allocation criteria. If there are any unused slots left at an airport, they can be passed on to other airlines.
Such slots will be handed over either to the airlines already operating at the airport or to others trying to establish a foothold there.