The European Commission has authorised operating aid for Erfurt Airport in Germany

On 4 June 2026, the European Commission approved operating aid notified by the German State on 29 December 2025 in favour of Erfurt Airport. This aid, amounting to EUR 6 million and granted by the Land of Thuringia, takes the form of a grant paid in several instalments, covering the period from 1 January 2025 to 3 April 2027.

This aid was declared compatible on the basis of the 2014 Guidelines on aid to airports and airlines (hereinafter the ‘Aviation Guidelines’), which are currently under review.

Operating aid for a regional airport

Erfurt Airport, operated by the public company Flughafen Erfurt GmbH, is located in the Land of Thuringia. In 2025, it handled 314,108 passengers and 147 tonnes of freight. It is situated 155 km from Leipzig-Halle Airport.

The airport had previously received operating aid from the Land of Thuringia for the period 2014–2019, approved by the Commission in 2018, as well as for the period 2019–2024, approved by the Commission in 2019, totalling EUR 11.6 million.

This airport has also received several investment grants under the General Block Exemption Regulation, which allows Member States to grant investment aid to regional airports handling up to three million passengers a year without having to notify the European Commission in advance.

The new measure notified by Germany to the Commission is a continuation of this authorised operating aid, in that it aims to ensure the long-term continuation of the airport’s operations, which have been affected by the COVID-19 pandemic and Russia’s invasion of Ukraine. Indeed, these exceptional events could not have been anticipated in the airport’s business plan or the market analysis previously submitted to the Commission as part of earlier notifications.

The ex ante business plan, submitted by the German authorities in connection with the new measure, forecasts a gradual improvement in economic performance, including in particular:

• a stabilisation of passenger traffic at around 307 000 in 2027;
• a return to a positive operating result from 2027 onwards.

Application of the 2014 guidelines on aid to airports and airlines

The European Commission has assessed the compatibility of this measure with the guidelines on aid to airports and airlines adopted in 2014. The section relating to operating aid has been extended by the Commission until 3 April 2027.

Firstly, the Commission verified that this aid contributed to a general objective. According to the German authorities, the airport is important for improving the region’s connectivity with the rest of Germany and Europe. Furthermore, it helps to boost tourism and encourages industrial investment in Thuringia. Finally, it is one of the few German airports capable of operating flights 24 hours a day, which is essential for cargo flights, diversion flights, etc.

On the basis of these factors, the Commission considered that the aid for Erfurt Airport contributed to the development of an economic activity, namely the provision of infrastructure and services related to air transport, and to the development of an economic region (the Land of Thuringia). Indeed, the airport’s impact on the economy and the attractiveness of the region, particularly in terms of jobs and tax revenue for the region and its local authorities, was deemed to be positive and significant. The Commission also highlighted the airport’s strategic role, as it is the only airport in the Land of Thuringia.

Furthermore, the Commission considers that the aid is proportionate since (i) it is limited to the minimum necessary to cover the airport’s operating deficit, (ii) it is determined ex ante in the form of a fixed amount based on a business plan for the period 2025–2027, (iii) it is capped in accordance with the threshold applicable to airports with fewer than 700,000 passengers (i.e. 80% of the average initial deficit over the period 2009–2013), and (iv) this business plan forecasts a positive operating result from 3 April 2027.

Finally, the Commission notes that the aid has an incentive effect in that, without the aid, the airport would have to significantly scale back its activities or even cease operations.

Conclusion

This decision confirms the need to maintain the option for Member States to fund their regional airports. Indeed, the liberalisation of air transport has enabled many of them to expand their operations, thereby improving regional connectivity and boosting tourism, even though not all of them are able to break even. Exceptional events (pandemic, energy crisis, geopolitical context, etc.) have hit this sector hard. Furthermore, the study supporting the assessment for the revision of the Aviation Guidelines shows that profitability levels are higher than they were 10 years ago, notably due to the scale of investment required in terms of safety and decarbonisation.

As a reminder, the European framework governing state aid for airports is currently under review.

Firstly, the Commission is considering extending the scope of the General Block Exemption Regulation to cover operating aid for airports handling up to 500,000 passengers per year, subject to compliance with the compatibility conditions set out therein. Currently, it applies to this category of aid for airports handling up to 200,000 passengers per year.

With regard to investment aid, the Commission wishes to impose stricter conditions in terms of aid intensity (a maximum of 75 per cent for airports with fewer than one million passengers per year, rather than up to 100 per cent for airports with up to 200,000 passengers per year). It proposes extending the catchment area from 100 to 150 or 200 km: consequently, any aid granted to an airport handling between 500,000 and 3 million passengers per year will have to be notified to the Commission if there is another airport within this extended catchment area, which effectively renders this exemption regulation inoperative and is therefore likely to result in a much higher number of notifications.

The new Regulation will enter into force on 1er January 2027. There is therefore still time to benefit from a more favourable public funding framework before the end of the year.

At the same time, the Commission has made progress on the revision of the Aviation Guidelines. It aims to phase out operating aid for airports handling more than 500,000 passengers per year within five years. The framework governing investment aid will also be stricter, as airports handling more than 3 million passengers will no longer be eligible for such aid. It is therefore recommended that the funding needs of airports likely to be disadvantaged by this reform be anticipated as soon as possible.

Member States and industry stakeholders have had the opportunity to submit their comments on these proposals. The Commission is due to finalise the texts on this basis.