Virgin Blue applauds Tribunal decision
Virgin Blue on Friday applauded a decision of the Australian Competition Tribunal to declare the Airside Services at Sydney Airport, ending a three year period of unfettered price increases in airport landing fees.
“It is the right decision and this is a very important case for consumers, for airlines and for many other industries,” said Brett Godfrey, Chief Executive.
“We asked for nothing more than to have fair and equitable commercial pricing negotiations with airports, with the safety net of being able to refer the matter to an independent arbitrator, should it be necessary,” he said.
“When monopoly suppliers dramatically increase the operating costs of companies, eventually those costs must be passed on to the consumer and we have pursued this outcome for over three years always believing that ever increasing fees at some airports set a worrying precedent as to just what is acceptable behaviour by monopolists.
Sydney Airport fees increased 97% prior to the sale of the airport and for Virgin Blue a further 52% in less than two years, through the changing of the charging methodology from weight based charges to per passenger charging.
The most recent report by the ACCC showed airport prices have increased by between 50 and 200% over the past three years.
The hearing before the Australian Competition Tribunal took place in October 2004. The decision and a short summary of reasons were released by the Australian Competition Tribunal on Friday with the full decision due to be handed down today.
Graham Muldoon
Vegas’s Billion-Dollar Secrets – What They Don’t Want Tourists to Know
Visit Florida’s New CEO Bryan Griffin Shares His Vision for State Tourism with Graham
Chicago’s Tourism Renaissance: Graham Interviews Kristin Reynolds of Choose Chicago
Graham Talks with Cassandra McCauley of MMGY NextFactor About the Latest Industry Research
Destination International’s Andreas Weissenborn: Research, Advocacy, and Destination Impact
Graham and Don Welsh Discuss the Success of Destinations International’s Annual Conference
Graham and CEO Andre Kiwitz on Ventura Travel’s UK Move and Recruitment for the Role
Brett Laiken and Graham Discuss Florida’s Tourism Momentum and Global Appeal
Graham and Elliot Ferguson on Positioning DC as a Cultural and Inclusive Global Destination
Graham Talks to Fraser Last About His England-to-Ireland Trek for Mental Health Awareness
Kathy Nelson Tells Graham About the Honour of Hosting the World Cup and Kansas City’s Future
Graham McKenzie on Sir Richie Richardson’s Dual Passion for Golf and His Homeland, Antigua
ADS PRO 
France prepares for a massive strike across all transports on September 18
Turkish tourism stalls due to soaring prices for accommodation and food
CCS Insight: eSIMs ready to take the travel world by storm
Germany new European Entry/Exit System limited to a single airport on October 12, 2025
Airlines suspend Madagascar services following unrest and army revolt