EU airlines to create powerful lobby group to fight for reforms
The leaders of Europe’s five largest airline groups came together for an historic first meeting today, after which they called on the EU to cut airport charges, reduce the cost of air traffic control and put measures in place to keep European airspace open during strikes by ATC staff.
The five airline groups, which included IAG, easyJet and Ryanair, also called for the removing of passenger taxes and ‘unreasonable environmental taxes’.
The airlines, which together represent half of the 400 milllion passengers in Europe, will present a united front when delivering their proposals to the new EU transport commissioner Violeta Bulc’s, who is consulting a new EU aviation strategy.
They also announced that they will create a Europe-wide airline lobby group, based on the successful Airlines of America, to put further pressure on the EU. They expect it will be up and running by October.
The group said that lowering airport charges, which currently represent 8% to 20% of their costs, would save passengers €1.5 billion a year. They called for a reform of the Airport Charges Directive to ensure that monopoly airports are ‘effectively regulated’ and security charges are ‘efficient’.
At a joint press conference in Brussels this morning, easyJet chief executive Carolyn McCall said one area that must be tackled by the EU was the lack of competition in ground handling at airports. "It is really unacceptable that any of us operate into airports where there is only one ground handler. The EU has to take that onboard," she said.
While stopping short of a call to outlaw ATC strikes, which have led to the cancellation of 3000 flights in the first half of this year alone, the group said new technology should be used to keep air space open during industrial action.
Ryanair boss Michael O’Leary, who has frequently called for strikes to be banned in the past, said other measures should be introduced to ensure that unions didn’t immediately resort to industrial action during a dispute. "It shouldn’t be the first club to be pulled from the golf bag," he said.
Air taxes were ‘counter-productive’, said IAG chief Willie Walsh, claiming that removing them would stimulate economic growth. "We want to impress upon the EU of the risk of passgenger taxes."
McCall said the airlines were ‘frustrated at the slowness of change’ within Europe following the introduction of a single sky several decades ago. However, she said technology now existed to cut costs and streamline travel.
Also at the meeting were the leaders of Air France-KLM and Lufthansa Group.
Linsey McNeill
Editor Linsey McNeill has been writing about travel for more than three decades. Bylines include The Times, Telegraph, Observer, Guardian and Which? plus the South China Morning Post. She also shares insider tips on thetraveljournalist.co.uk
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