British low-cost airline EasyJet, one of the largest users of Schiphol Airport, questions the higher air passenger tax that the government wants to introduce.
According to society, the tax does not stimulate the sector to become more sustainable.
De Telegraaf reported, based on insiders, that the air passenger tax amounts to almost 30 euros per ticket, 3.5 times more than the surcharge that currently applies. EasyJet explains that transfer passengers are excluded from the measure. This will put the bill entirely on the plate of the Dutch consumer. Foreign travellers are protected.
Furthermore, EasyJet explains that sustainable flying with a high occupancy rate is not stimulated enough by the scheme. The price fighter says that a passenger flying economy class to Madrid, for example, with an estimated emission of 81 kilograms of CO2, cannot be compared with a passenger flying business class to Sydney, good for an estimated emission of 3360 kilograms of CO2.
Furthermore, at least 50 percent of the revenue from this tax should be used to support sustainability initiatives in the aviation sector. “Investments in new technologies are urgently needed to accelerate the sustainability of the sector,” said EasyJet.