An increase in European air traffic has also led to a significant increase in the number of delayed flights at Swedish airports.

At state-owned Swedish airports, the number of delays has almost doubled since 2014 and the main cause is said to be congestion in the airspace, according to the Swedish Civil Aviation Administration, TT reports.

According to Freja Annamatz, press manager at SAS, the airlines are well aware of the problem with the cramped airspace.

– We are working together to create better conditions within the EU to create better air traffic, she tells Ekot.

According to figures from the airline association Airlines for Europe, around 60 percent of European flight delays can be explained precisely by congestion in the air.

However, when it comes to Swedish airspace in particular, there is no real congestion. Instead, it is the airspace in Central Europe that often becomes congested – which leads to a domino effect for Swedish travelers, as traffic then has to be rerouted to avoid queues in the air.

The increase in delayed flights has also been significant over the past five years. According to statistics from state-owned Swedavia, which owns Arlanda and eight of the country's ten largest airports, the proportion of flights delayed by at least 15 minutes has increased by almost 90 percent over the past five years.

SAS is the airline with the most departures from the state-owned Swedish airports, and according to Freja Annamatz, the situation poses a challenge for the airlines.

– There is a lack of air traffic controllers and the airspace is crowded, but together we are working to improve the conditions, she says.

Source: TT/Ekot