Heathrow passengers face “a worse experience”, the airport has warned, after the regulator told it to cut passenger fees amid rising demand for flights.
The Civil Aviation Authority (CAA) has said the cap on landing fees charged per passenger at Heathrow will drop from £30.19 to £26.31 by 2026, following a furious effort airport and airline lobbying.
Airlines have long maintained that Heathrow is one of the most expensive airports in the world and have urged the CAA to resist its demands to raise charges to over £40 per passenger.
Heathrow, meanwhile, said it needed to raise fees to ensure the airport does not fall into disrepair.
CAA Chief Executive Richard Moriarty said: “Today’s announcement is about doing the right thing for consumers. We have listened very carefully to Heathrow Airport and the airlines who have different views on the future level of royalties.
“Our independent and unbiased analysis balances affordable burdens for consumers, while enabling Heathrow to make the necessary investments for the future.”
However, Heathrow hit back at the decision, saying it would cause further chaos for passengers at a time when thousands of customers are being hit by widespread cancellations due to staff shortages.
John Holland-Kaye, Heathrow’s chief executive, said: “As the industry rebuilds, our aim is to work alongside airlines and their ground providers to provide passengers with a reliable and consistent journey across Heathrow.
“The CAA continues to underestimate what it takes to provide a good passenger service, both in terms of the level of investment and operating costs required and the fair incentive needed for private investors to fund it.
“Uncorrected, these elements of the CAA’s proposal will only worsen the passenger experience at Heathrow as investment in the service dries up.”
Airlines including British Airways and Virgin Atlantic are still likely to be disappointed by the regulator’s decision as the fee is considerably higher than the £22 charged last year.
In a long-running row between them and Heathrow, which is owned by a collection of mostly foreign pension, infrastructure and sovereign funds, the airlines have accused the airport of paying £4billion in dividends in recent years.
Mr Holland-Kaye added: “Economic regulation should stimulate affordable private investment in UK infrastructure to the benefit of users, not hinder them. The CAA’s proposal will jeopardize the delivery of key improvements for passengers, while raising serious questions about Britain’s attractiveness to private investors.
“We will take the time to further assess the CAA’s proposal and provide an additional factual response to this latest consultation. There’s still time for CAA to get it right with a plan that puts passengers first and encourages all industry players to work together to better serve the traveling public.
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Source: www.telegraph.co.uk
This notice was published: 2022-06-28 07:06:40
