Europe's airlines say wars, red tape are holding them back as rivals streak ahead

Europe’s main carriers, led by lobby group Airlines for Europe (A4E), warned on May 20, 2026 that regulatory costs, rising safety and sustainability rules and recent geopolitical shocks are eroding EU carriers’ competitiveness versus Chinese and Middle East rivals. In a submission to the EU’s Aviation and Aeronautics Strategy (feedback deadline this week), A4E — representing carriers including Ryanair, Air France-KLM and Lufthansa — urged measures such as a stronger crisis-management framework, an ‘aviation waiver’ to temporarily relax obligations, and actions to fix the structural failure in the sustainable aviation fuel (SAF) market. The plea signals downside pressure on European aviation exposure (Europe 50) absent policy action to cut costs and secure fuel supply.