Paris – 02.07.2026: A report by the Finance Committee of the French Senate puts the total flight delay minutes attributable to the state air navigation service at 6.6 million for 2025. The resulting additional costs for airlines and operators are estimated in the document at around €800 million. At the center of the criticism is the Direction des services de la navigation aérienne (DSNA), which manages civil airspace in France and is subordinate to the Directorate General for Civil Aviation (DGAC).
The senators paint a picture of structural weaknesses: too few air traffic controllers, delayed modernization projects in control and IT systems, and a work organization described as rigid. The report points to an unfavorable record in a European comparison. For years, a significant share of air traffic control-caused delays in Europe has been located in sectors over French territory. Especially affected are complex corridors over Île-de-France and the major hubs Paris-Charles-de-Gaulle, Orly and Lyon.
From the transport ministry there is at the same time a note of recent relief. Minister Philippe Tabarot said that in the first five months of the current year delays caused by air traffic control had fallen significantly compared with the same period last year. After the problematic pre-season a turning point is being seen. Tabarot announced plans to accelerate recruitments, increase training cohorts and bring forward priority investments in the modernization of the control software.
The Senate report nevertheless calls for binding timetables. Mentioned are milestone plans for budget programme 612 “Navigation aérienne”, clear milestones for software rollouts, robust performance indicators and regular progress reports. It also recommends closer involvement of Eurocontrol to distribute traffic flows more flexibly in overloaded airspace and to mitigate capacity bottlenecks on peak days.
For airlines and passengers the effects remain concrete: additional fuel costs from rerouting and holding patterns, disruptions to flight and connection schedules, and ground service costs. Industry associations are pressing for predictable staffing plans, especially for the summer high season, and for coordinated management of maintenance windows in control centres. Airports warn of reputational damage if punctuality levels from the previous year should return.
Whether the announced measures will be sufficient will be reflected in the stability of the main travel period and in Europe-wide indicators. The senators note that short-term reductions in delay minutes do not automatically solve structural problems. What is now decisive are speed and binding commitments in staffing, software modernization and organization – areas in which, according to the report, France has so far moved too slowly.
Sources
- Sénat – Rapport de la commission des Finances
- Franceinfo