European airport boss calls for scrutiny of rising airfares

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A senior European airport executive has called on regulators to scrutinise the cost of air fares following a surge in ticket prices this year.

Olivier Jankovec, director-general of airport trade body ACI Europe, said ticket prices had risen 30 per cent year-on-year in Europe and regulators should “monitor the level of air fares, and check whether there is no abuse of pricing power”.

Ticket prices have shot up despite the weak economic backdrop thanks to a combination of huge demand since the end of pandemic restrictions and a shortage of aircraft. 

Jankovec said he was not asking for air fares to be capped, but that it was “legitimate” to question why many major airports had their landing fees capped while airlines were free to charge whatever they wanted.

Regulators like the Civil Aviation Authority in the UK oversee consumer protection in the industry, including passenger rights during disruption.

The CAA has intervened when there have been problems like last summer’s travel chaos, and the delays to passenger refunds for cancelled flights during the pandemic.

But while national regulators can cap landing fees that airports are allowed to charge, they don’t have any role in setting airfares.

One executive at a European regulator said it would be “challenging” to control ticket prices.

Jankovec said airlines “continue to cry and whine” about airport landing charges, which are passed on to passengers through airfares, while “exerting massive pricing power” by raising ticket prices.

In response, trade group Airlines for Europe, which represents carriers including easyJet, Ryanair and British Airways, said competition among airlines has helped drive down air fares and “delivered affordable air travel for millions of European consumers”.

“Ultimately, airports — especially larger ones — still function as natural monopolies, necessitating firm regulatory oversight to keep them in check,” it said.

Airlines and airports have regularly clashed as the industry has recovered from the pandemic. 

London’s Heathrow has been the site of the biggest rows, with airlines including British Airways and Virgin Atlantic leading a successful push to stop the airport raising its fees by 90 per cent following the pandemic.

ACI Europe on Tuesday said Europe’s airports posted a combined net profit of €6.4bn in 2022, the industry’s first since 2019. But it said this had partly been achieved by companies “significantly” cutting capital investment. 

The industry body said the number of cities connected by air travel in Europe has fallen 16 per cent since 2019 as airlines have prioritised the busiest and most lucrative routes. This means “travellers from European airports continue to see fewer options”.