IATA Urges Mexico to Embrace Global Standards for Slot Management

The International Air Transport Association (IATA) has called on Mexico to apply global standards for the management of airport slots to maximize the country’s air infrastructure and ensure its flourishing air industry remains competitive. The recently-proposed slot system by Mexico’s Federal Economic Competition Commission COFECE deviates from global standards in the following ways: •    The auctioning of slots to the highest bidder by the regulator could limit competition by preventing less well-established and smaller air carriers from entering or expanding in the marketplace, because they may lack the financial wherewithal to acquire slots. Limiting competition in this way will have