There are more than 380 airports with scheduled commercial traffic across the European Union1. We all know the big hubs that handle millions of passengers each year – from Amsterdam and Frankfurt to Paris and Rome. However, there are many EU airports that help connect Europe’s more remote regions to the outside world. Many of them rely on regional-sized aircraft.
Regional air connectivity is not a luxury, but a lifeline for many communities. It fosters social inclusion and economic development, including the ability to attract and retain businesses and professionals. Greater aviation activity in a region is correlated with some increase in the growth in population, employment, and per capita incomes2. Those findings should resonate strongly in Europe. After all, one of the EU's founding ambitions is to ensure that people can thrive regardless of where they live.
Indeed, small airports and airlines act as catalysts in feeding traffic into hub airports for onward journeys to other major national and international destinations. Smaller airports within a network generate traffic that ensures the sustainability of larger airports, resulting in improved load factors and optimal aircraft utilisation by airlines.
Across Europe there are countless examples where air services help bridge distances that geography, terrain or infrastructure make difficult to overcome. Take the Greek islands for example: whilst ferries are essential, air links provide year-round access to healthcare, education and economic opportunities, particularly during the winter months when ferries are less frequent. In the Danish island of Bornholm, a third of air passengers use flights for work-related travel, with over two-thirds indicating that air connectivity is essential for job retention. In Corsica, 25% of residents travel by air for professional reasons, making up 62% of passengers on round-trip flights between the island and Paris3.
Territorial cohesion is one of the core objectives of the European Union and the European Commission explicitly recognises transport connectivity as a prerequisite for achieving it4. When regions become disconnected, economic opportunities tend to concentrate elsewhere – and so does investment. Professionals and young people leave, widening the gap between Europe’s prosperous centres and regions. Regional aviation helps prevent that from happening.
According to the European Regions Airline Association (ERA), regional air transport supported more than 335,000 jobs and generated more than €23bn in gross value added across Europe in 20235. Regional aviation stimulates additional ‘catalytic’ economic activity by enabling passenger flows and connectivity to different regions. A large portion of this additional economic impact is linked to tourism flows as a result of regional flights. ERA estimates that the tourism enabled by regional aviation supported 4.5 million jobs and €205bn in GVA in 2023 across the continent6.
Apart from its social and economic benefits, the value of regional connectivity has become even clearer in recent years as Europe has faced several disruptive crises. The pandemic exposed vulnerabilities in global supply chains. Russia's invasion of Ukraine, airspace closures, trade conflicts and geopolitical tensions underscore the risks of overdependence on a small number of States outside of the European Union. Resilience comes from diversity. This is where regional aviation plays a key role to maintain economic activity, support emergency services and provide alternative routes when disruption occurs elsewhere.
Consider northern Sweden: The region is becoming an important hub for Europe's green industrial transition, with major investments in clean steel and critical raw materials7. But attracting investment is only part of the story. These projects also need access to workers and markets across Europe. Regional air connectivity helps make that possible, ensuring that economic opportunity is not limited by geography.
Resilience is also shaped by preparing Europe’s aviation sector for the next generation of aviation technologies and alternative fuels. Sustainable aviation fuel (SAF) deployment, electric propulsion and hydrogen-powered aircraft are still in the early stages. However, Europe has an opportunity to lead in these technologies, as many of the first electric and hybrid aircraft are expected to operate on shorter routes connecting regional communities.
Regional aircraft manufacturer ATR is helping to advance the transition. Through its ATR EVO concept and participation in European research programmes, the company is exploring hybrid-electric propulsion technologies for entry into service in the 2030s.
Several other projects are already being set up across the EU to further support these efforts. France is investing heavily in hydrogen aviation through its national aerospace strategy and support for hydrogen programmes8. Sweden's ambition to become one of the first countries to enable commercial electric aviation, supported by airport operator Swedavia and a range of industry partners, is another example9. Through the Clean Aviation Joint Undertaking, the European Union is investing in the aircraft technologies that could transform regional aviation over the coming decade10. These initiatives create opportunities for Europe's regional aviation network to become a launchpad for climate innovation.
It also demonstrates something important: connectivity and decarbonisation do not have to compete with one another. In fact, they can reinforce each other. Air traffic across the globe is expected to increase by 3.8% annually over the two decades . Climate debates often present a false choice between air traffic growth and emissions reduction. The real question should be how to deliver this growth in a more sustainable way. The global aviation sector not only has a long-term aspirational goal of net zero carbon emissions by 2050, but also a plan to get there through the deployment of SAF, technological innovation, operational efficiency improvements and market-based measures.
Now it is about translating that ambition into action: Europe already has a similar instrument in the form of 165 public-service obligation routes. The next step could be to align those routes more closely with the EU’s climate objectives. Regional routes can become priority corridors for low-emission aircraft and serve as testbeds for hydrogen infrastructure.
Europe could start treating regional aviation as a strategic tool that helps build a more resilient and sustainable Union. The debate about aviation in Europe is often framed around emissions targets and passenger numbers. Both are important. But they are not the whole story.
Regional aviation is about connecting people to opportunities. It is about ensuring that geography does not determine economic prosperity. Increasingly, it is also about creating the conditions for Europe to lead in the technologies that will shape the future of flight.
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1 Aviation: Benefits Beyond Borders, 2024: www.aviationbenefits.org
2 Aviation: Benefits Beyond Borders, 2024: www.aviationbenefits.org
3 European Regions Airline Association, The economic, social and environmental value of regional airlines in Europe, 2025: https://www.eraa.org/wp-content/uploads/2025/04/oxera_era_report_final_0.pdf
4 European Commission, Territorial Cohesion: https://ec.europa.eu/regional_policy/policy/what/territorial-cohesion_en
5 European Regions Airline Association, The economic, social and environmental value of regional airlines in Europe, 2025: https://www.eraa.org/wp-content/uploads/2025/04/oxera_era_report_final_0.pdf
6 European Regions Airline Association, The economic, social and environmental value of regional airlines in Europe, 2025: https://www.eraa.org/wp-content/uploads/2025/04/oxera_era_report_final_0.pdf
7 Just Transition Fund helps Sweden move towards climate neutrality, https://ec.europa.eu/regional_policy/whats-new/panorama/2023/11/15-11-2023-just-transition-fund-helps-sweden-move-towards-climate-neutrality_en
8 France 2030, https://france2030.ai/sectors/sustainable-aviation/
9 Swedavia electric aviation initiative, https://www.swedavia.com/about-swedavia/sustainability/sustainable-aviation/
10 Clean Aviation Joint Undertaking, https://www.clean-aviation.eu/about-us/who-we-are