The 41 member states of air traffic service provider Eurocontrol have elected Raul Medina Caballero, who is currently at the helm of Civil Aviation of Spain, as its new director general from 1 January 2023. Caballero will take over from Eamonn Brennan who has led the organisation since 2018. Brussels-based Eurocontrol works to promote the safe and seamless air traffic management across Europe, including the co-ordination and planning of air traffic management in the continent. "I would like to thank the Eurocontrol member states for the trust that they have put in me. I look forward to working with all the states as well as the stakeholders over the coming years to continue to support and improve aviation in Europe and to build on the achievements of Eamonn Brennan over the past 5 years," states Caballero.

Dutch airline KLM has warned that government plans to limit aircraft movements at Amsterdam Schiphol on noise and carbon grounds threatens its ability to act as a viable hub airport. In a move that appears to have blindsided KLM, the Dutch government in recent days announced that it would set an upper limit of 440,000 aircraft movements at Schiphol from November, against a previous projection of 540,000. The current limit is 500,000 . "I want to offer certainty and perspective to both the aviation sector and local residents," infrastructure minister Mark Harbers told ABC News. "This decision forms the basis for a new equilibrium. Unfortunately, it contains a difficult message for the aviation sector, which is still fully recovering from the drastic consequences of the corona pandemic." KLM complains that the plans were announced without prior discussion or consultation, and that a lack of certainty surrounding access at Schiphol threatens its own long-term investment programme in new aircraft. Furthermore, the airline argues, it threatens Schiphol's position as a major hub and gateway to Europe. "The KLM network depends on the number of destinations we serve coupled with the flight frequencies we operate," it adds. "This is because KLM and its partner airlines offer logical connections between destinations through a hub-and-spoke system operating out of Schiphol. Each flight that is cancelled has consequences for passengers arriving for connecting flights." The airline says that operating fewer flights means offering fewer connections, reducing the profitability of all routes. In turn, this will hit frequencies, eroding Schiphol's hub function. "If KLM is compelled to relinquish slots, it will have to say goodbye to its smaller aircraft to subsequently focus on 'more significant' European traffic flows operating its bigger aircraft at a lower frequency," it continues. "Other destinations will then disappear from the network. KLM's intricately connected network – currently serving 170 destinations – will then no longer be tenable. And this outcome will take shape quickly." The airline observes that demand for flights remains strong and that travellers clearly wish to travel to locations that are not easily accessible by train or car. A reduction in flying would therefore result in travellers using less efficient methods of transport, which would not benefit the environment. There is a risk that limiting movements at Schiphol will result in international companies avoiding the Netherlands while traffic flows are simply rerouted elsewhere, KLM suggests. Likewise, Schiphol airport believes the plans "now lead to great uncertainty, and much remains unclear". Committing itself to further consultation on a detailed plan for capacity at the airport, it adds: "We see that major risks are being taken with regard to the quality of the network."

Qatar Airways has signed a codeshare agreement with South Africa's Airlink, following the collapse earlier this month of the Middle Eastern carrier's previous codeshare partner in the country, Comair. Oneworld member Qatar Airways says the codeshare agreement covers 45 destinations in 13 countries and increases its footprint in Southern Africa through improved access to destinations including Port Elizabeth, Hoedspruit, Skukuza and George in South Africa as well as cities in Botswana, Namibia, Zambia, Zimbabwe and Mozambique. A codeshare deal with Dubai-based Emirates was struck by Airlink earlier this month. Its chief executive Rodger Foster said in a LinkedIn post on 9 June that other local airlines would quickly fill the gap left by Comair, which is being liquidated after failing to secure enough capital to enable it to restart flights. Airlink's codeshare with Qatar Airways will begin on 6 July, subject to regulatory approval. Qatar Airways operates 21 weekly flights from Doha to Johannesburg, where Airlink is based, as well as 10 to Cape Town and four to Durban. "We have boosted our presence in the African market by adding eight new destinations since the start of the pandemic and fostering partnerships such as this dynamic agreement with Airlink, which will greatly enhance our offering to our customers and support travel and trade," states Qatar Airways Group chief executive Akbar Al Baker.