They say that a "single European sky" would lead to a 12 million tonne annual reduction in the CO2 produced by airlines flying in Europe's skies.

Currently aircrafts are taking unnecessary detours to save on air traffic control fees.

Speaking from Strasbourg, Scottish Labour MEP David Martin, who is a member of the European Parliament's Climate Change Committee, said:

"It is a vital step towards protecting the environment in a time of ever increasing air travel. Getting airlines into the Emissions Trading Scheme is also vital but we must seek policy coherence, and attack this crisis from all angles.

"Climate change is happening now. We can't afford to wait to make this type of change, which will result in a sizeable reduction in carbon emissions at no recognisable cost.

"The current system places a financial burden on passengers and airlines. European air space is divided into an unnecessary and complex map of 27 different regions, resulting in chaotic and environmentally harmful airtime. The single European Sky is the solution to this chaos."

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