The European Commission has confirmed the measure to abolish short air flights. It will therefore indeed take place in France, with a 3-year evaluation phase.
The 2021 climate law provided for the abolition of short flights on French territory – an emblematic ecological measure to reduce the impact of aircraft. But it was first challenged by the Union of French Airports (UAF). As a result, the European Commission had to rule on the consistency of this rule with European legislation.
It is now done: the measure is validated, in a decision published in the Official Journal of the European Union, this Friday, December 2, 2022. Concretely, what will the measure look like?
Short flights are compared to trains
The rule, as validated by the Commission, is as follows: any journey that can can also be done in less than 2h30 by train is prohibited for airlines. No plane journey can be offered to you for a destination in France where there is a train offer of less than 2h30 journey. The air links between Paris and Bordeaux, Lyon or Nantes are thus concerned.
However, the European Commission’s analysis led to the withdrawal of a derogation, initially provided for by the French government, for short connecting flights. The EU considers that this would be a form of discrimination between airlines (some make connections, others do not).
The European Commission also adds a duration to the measure: three years. After this period, there will have to be a re-examination. This means that the French government will have to submit an assessment to the European executive at the end of these three years, and depending on the results, the measure will be renewed or not, or even simply modified.
The Minister Delegate for Transport, Clément Beaune, bliss of this decision, which he describes as a ” major step forward “.