Airports

A4E: revised airport regulation will benefit European consumers

Today, the CEOs of A4E’s member airlines have reiterated their concerns on the poor implementation of the EU airports regulation (Airport Charges Directive) which has undermined Europe’s competitiveness and thwarted the creation of more than 200,000 jobs.

Various studies, including by IATA, have revealed that charges at the largest European airports have doubled in 10 years (20062016) while average air fares intra-Europe have fallen from €199 to €96 in this same period.

“While air fares have gone down, airport charges have increased substantially. Disproportionate airport charges are simply bad for consumers. Lower charges would have been passed onto consumers by airlines, leading to even lower fares and boosting European economies.

The current system incentivises airports to spend an exorbitant amount of money at both airlines’ and passengers’ expense”, said Thomas Reynaert, Managing Director of A4E.

“A4E has been calling on the EU to significantly strengthen economic regulation of major European airport monopolies by prioritising the interests of consumers. Therefore, we are pleased that the European Commission has launched a review into the Airport Charges Directive”, Reynaert added.

A4E welcomes the release of the European Commission`s evaluation of the implementation and functioning of the Airport Charges Directive that was conducted by Steer Davies Gleave. It confirms the widely reported experiences of airlines regarding the fragmented and inefficient implementation of the ACD.

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