(Finance) – Aci Europe rejects Iata’s theses on increases in airfares and on the application of airport fees. It all started last June with the declarations of the director general of Iata, Willie Walsh, which predicted that average airfares in Europe would be around 16% higher than pre-pandemic. However, in June, the average consumer price index for the EU was 20% higher than in 2019.
Walsh added to the matter by referring to the increases applied by European airports and air navigation service providers, citing in particular the stopovers of London Heathrow (+56%) e Amsterdam Schiphol (+37%).
ACI Europe replied that IATA’s thesis refers to only two airports and they do not correspond to realityspecifying that in 2023 airport charges in Europe increased by 13.6%, while during the summer the rates of European airlines grew by 38% compared to 2019.
Olivier Jankovecgeneral director of Aci Europe, claimed the accuracy of the data, underlining that “many airports have not yet adjusted their user fees to the inflationary pressure, which the regulatory authorities do not consider, just as they do not take into account the losses accrued with Covid, which have reduced the investment capabilities of airports”.
In his reply, Jankovec adds that ‘the European airline market has changed structurally during the pandemic and recovery, and it is crucial that policymakers and regulators now see these changes and what lies ahead. In particular, accelerating airline consolidation and airports reaching capacity limits will test our ability to manage air traffic.’