Air travel from Mumbai likely to cost more

New Delhi: Air travellers boarding at Mumbai may have to pay more soon. The civil aviation ministry has sent a letter to GVK-backed Mumbai
International Airport (MIAL), allowing the airport operator to increase aeronautical charges by 10%, which would in turn be passed on to the passenger. Aeronautical charges comprise passenger service fee (PSF) and aircraft landing and parking charges.
“The civil aviation ministry has allowed MIAL to increase aeronautical charges by 10% effective January 1, 2009. Due to this, landing, parking and passenger service fee at Mumbai airport would go up next year,” a person close to the development told ET. MIAL has already issued a circular in this regard to airlines, he added. A 10% increase in airport charges would add about Rs 35 crore to the airport’s total annual revenue.
Confirming that the airline has received the circular from MIAL, a Kingfisher Airlines spokesperson said: “We have received the circular. So it would be to early to assess any impact of this on the air ticket. As air ticket is not just the reflection of aeronautical charges, it would take some time to conclude anything.”
According to an industry estimate, landing, parking and navigational charges contribute to about 6% of the total operating cost of an airline. Reacting to the development, an airline official, who did not wish to be identified, said that the airline company would have to pass on the additional financial burden to customers.
24/12/08 Nirbhay Kumar/Economic Times

To Read the News in full at Source, Click the Headline

Categories: Airports Dec 2008, Indian Aviation- In General Dec 2008