http://www.bangkokpost.com/news/loca...es-on-the-rise
Landing fees for airlines on the rise
- Published: 24/02/2011 at 12:00 AM
- Newspaper section: News
International airlines and large domestic carriers are being asked to pay more to land at Suvarnabhumi airport.
Aeronautical Radio of Thailand Co is increasing air traffic fees to stem losses last year of several million baht.
The new fee structure calls for the cost of landing at Thai airports to increase for international flights and airlines flying big planes, but to go down for low-cost airlines.
Aerothai president Somchai Thean-anant said Aerothai would base its fees on flight distance and the weight of planes, rather than imposing a flat fee as in the past.
Low-cost airlines would pay less because they use small planes, while long-haul international carriers would have to pay more.
This included airlines which overfly Thai air space without bringing travellers into the country.
"The air traffic fee is 10,000 baht per flight on average. It comes into effect in May or June," ACM Somchai said.
The new fee structure will raise Aerothai's income to a level where it can cover costs.
The company has been in the red for three years with accumulated losses of 800 million baht. Airlines jointly established the non-profit organisation and are obliged to cover the loss.
ACM Somchai expects the fees to raise Aerothai's income from about 6 billion baht last year to 6.1 billion baht this year.
He said his company applied advanced technology to air traffic control, so airlines did not have to spend so long circling the skies before they land, thus saving on fuel costs.
Thai Airways International stood to benefit the most from this, as it operated the most flights in Thai skies.
However, a source at the Transport Ministry said the fees would still hurt THAI, because its aircraft on domestic routes were too big.