What really happens in the skies when the fate of aircraft depends on those on the ground? Air traffic controller Olga Toki speaks to To Vima about a hidden, adrenaline-charged world

From radar failures to flight caps and delays, air traffic controllers at Athens International airport outline the challenges as summer traffic concludes and reforms remain unsettled

GATCA will stop work for 4 hours as part of a 24-hour strike declared on that day by the largest civil servants’ union, the Supreme Administration of Greek Civil Servants Trade Unions ADEDY.

The 24 Greek airports managed by HCAA handled 4.49 million passengers between Jan. and June 2025, a 7.5% increase.

Tourism spending also showed remarkable improvement, as in the first four months of 2025, 4.12 million visitors spent €2.16 billion.

While the average growth in air traffic across Europe stands at just 1.8%, according to 2024 data, compared to 2019 levels, Athens Airport has recorded a notable 24.5% increase.

Flight numbers at AIA, during the first eight months of 2024 recorded an 11.8% increase compared to the same period last year, with the flights reaching 180,594.

HCAA Director George Saounatsos lauded the HCCA staff calling them the “main driving force behind the rising aviation metrics” in the rise in Air traffic in Greece