Budget airlines seek new pan-EU air traffic agency

By Darren Ennis

BRUSSELS, March 26 (Reuters) - Europe's leading low-cost airlines want a single European-wide air traffic control authority which they said will eliminate delays in the sky and reduce carbon-dioxide emissions by 12 percent by 2020.

The European Low Fares Airline Association, which represents low-cost carriers such as Ryanair (RYA.I) and Easyjet (EZJ.L), said the European Union should replace its 39 air traffic control agencies with one pan-EU organisation -- replicating the system in the United States.

"In the U.S. they have one system, God help them when they have to try and figure out our system," Ryanair Chief Executive Michael O'Leary told a news conference on Wednesday in Brussels.

The Irish budget airline chief was in the EU capital to spearhead ELFAA's campaign to convince the European Commission to include its plan as part of the EU executive's reform of air travel across the 27-member bloc which is currently under consideration.

"European air traffic management inefficiency caused a scandalous 21 million minutes of flight delays in 2007," O'Leary said.

"Removing this inefficiency would equate to eliminating the emissions of 70 short-haul aircraft operating non stop for a year and would deliver massive benefits to consumers and to the environment."

So far Brussels has faced stiff resistance from many member states who see control of their skies as matter a of national interest.

ELFAA also wants Brussels to persuade governments to reduce the amount of air space put aside for military use which commercial aircraft must avoid.

"Take a flight from Dublin to London which has to fly around Wales because the British air force uses Wales as a practice round," O'Leary said. "It's ridiculous not to be able to simply fly in a straight line from A to B," he said.

ELFAA says its proposals on EU airspace will reduce CO2 emissions from aircraft by 10 percent by 2013 and by at least 12 percent by 2020 based on 2007 levels.

"The ELFAA plan will eliminate 75 percent of the current European delays by 2013. By 2020 ... delays can be fully eliminated," O'Leary said.

(Editing by Erica Billingham)