Page 12 - AHATA
P. 12
30 INTERNATIONAL AWEMainta Dialuna,30 October 2023
Air Travel Costs Soar Due to
Taxes and Schiphol Contraction
TRAVELERS are set to face increasing airfare costs due to Airport, implemented by the outgoing Cabinet, further
a combination of environmental and aviation taxes, along contributes to the escalating ticket prices.
with the contraction of Schiphol Airport. Marjan Rintel, CEO
of KLM, warns that these factors are driving up ticket prices Rintel calls on political parties to reconsider the extent of
and negatively impacting travelers’ choices. national taxes imposed on air travel, stressing their limited
Rintel emphasizes the hefty burden of taxes and fees contribution to sustainability. She contends that such
imposed on flight tickets, citing an example where a ticket measures may lead travelers to opt for alternative airports
to Budapest already incurs a staggering 60% in additional and airlines, undermining environmental policies.
costs.
Despite these challenges, Air France-KLM has reported its
She attributes this price surge to political actions and the most successful quarter ever this summer, achieving an
growing number of measures proposed for air travel, espe- operating profit of 1.3 billion euros from July to September,
cially during the election campaign leading up to the general marking a significant increase compared to the previous
elections in November. year.
Overall, this summer saw profits triple from the previous
Moreover, the controversial reduction in size of Schiphol year.
