Greece air traffic control strained by tourism boom

Greece's air traffic controllers are under pressure from a summer tourism boom that has pushed flight volumes well above low-season levels and exposed weaknesses in ageing aviation systems.

The Greek Civil Aviation Authority says the country's airports usually handle between 1,000 and 1,500 flights a day in the low season, but averaged 2,700 flights a day in the first week of July. Eurocontrol says overall traffic in southeast Europe, including Greek airspace, has risen about 40 percent from 2019.

Tourist arrivals in Greece reached 38 million in 2025, 23 percent above the 2019 pre-Covid peak, in a country of about 10 million people.

A January 4 breakdown in the communication system linking controllers and aircraft forced authorities to close Greek airspace for hours, causing cancellations and diversions. Greece later announced a renovation programme worth about 300 million euros, including new digital communication systems and replacement of ageing radar. Installation of the communication systems began in mid-August, and the full project is due to be completed by 2028.

Controllers also say staffing is inadequate. Shift supervisor Giorgos Stamoulakatos said Greece has 154 controllers but needs 250. New controllers were hired in 2025 and 2026, but each newcomer needs five years of training.

Air traffic controller Areti Anastopoulos said controllers normally guide about 20 pilots an hour, but current queues can reach 40. She said 33 planes landed in one hour, above what she described as a 28-plane limit.

Eurocontrol says the Middle East war has added about 300 extra flights crossing Greek airspace each day, nearly six percent of daily traffic. The European Commission has also brought a case before the Court of Justice of the European Union accusing Greece of failing to align its navigation procedures with the global Performance-Based Navigation standard.