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German aviation sector calls for air travel taxes to be cut

October 20, 2024

Airlines Eurowings and Ryanair have reduced flights from German airports after complaining about high fees. Now an industry association has called on the German government to roll back taxes on flights.

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Two planes belonging to Eurowings and Ryanair at Berlin's airport
Airlines have slammed Germany for its high aviation taxes and airport feesImage: Schoening/imageBROKER/picture alliance

Germany's aviation sector called for taxes on air travel to be slashed on Sunday.

It comes after Ryanair and Eurowings recently scaled back services to and from Germany, citing high costs.

"Flying has to remain affordable," German Aviation Association president Jens Bischof said in remarks published by the Frankfurter Allgemeine Zeitung newspaper.

"The air transport tax must be abolished. Sweden has shown the way," said Bischof, who is also the CEO of Eurowings.

High costs render German airports uncompetitive

Germany increases air travel tax

Germany has some of the highest airport fees in Europe.

But one particularly contentious fee has been an air travel tax that the government increased in May 2024.

The tax now adds between €15 ($16) and €70 ($76) per ticket, depending on the distance.

The measure was introduced for environmental reasons but it has now been earmarked for other purposes too.

zc/jcg (dpa, AFP)

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