Agent fee issue now with aviation min

New Delhi: In A setback to foreign carriers, the law ministry has passed on the responsibility of taking a view on the legality of the new zero-commission regime for travel agents put in place by a number of airlines , to the civil aviation ministry.
“The law ministry has asked the aviation ministry to take a view on the matter,” a government official, who requested not to be quoted, told ET. The issue is currently under consideration of the civil aviation minister Praful Patel, he added.
Foreign carriers, including Lufthansa, British Airways, Air France and Singapore Airlines, had done away with the zero-commission model for travel agents in 2008 moving on to a transaction fee model where travellers pay a fee ranging from Rs 250 to Rs 5,000 based on the ticket price. This had led to wide-spread protests from travel agencies who demanded that airlines should be mandated to stick to the existing commission regime which ensured a fixed commission of up to 5% for them.
The Directorate General of Civil Aviation (DGCA), the aviation regulator functioning under the administrative control of aviation ministry, had earlier endorsed the travel agents’ demand for commission on sale of air-tickets . It had given its ruling following the Kerala High Court’s instruction to examine the issue and see if the airlines’ decision was in accordance with law.
02/02/10 Nirbhay Kumar/Economic Times

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Categories: Indian Aviation- In General Feb 2010