Dutch airline KLM warned that the proposals of the lower house of Dutch Parliament aiming to tax connecting passengers would be detrimental to air connections in the Netherlands, where the hub ofAmsterdam Schiphol has carved out an important place for itself in connecting international travelers, reports the Dutch website Welingelichte Kringen.
KLM considers the plan to introduce a tax on connecting passengers at Schiphol Airport, as this could lead to a sharp reduction in the number of flights and significantly fewer passengers traveling with the airline. KLM said this after a motion from CDA (the Christian Democratic Appeal, a center-right Dutch party) in favor of the tax was adopted by the majority of the House of Representatives.
However, KLM says this will have a negative effect on flight connections from Schiphol, meaning travelers from the Netherlands may no longer be able to fly directly to certain destinations. As a result, travelers might choose other airportswhich has major consequences for KLM.
The Dutch management of Air France-KLM also declared that the Netherlands was the first country in the world to propose this type of taxation and warned that in addition to an effect “harmful” on air connections from the Netherlands, the ticket prices will increase by around 80 to 100 euros from January next year. “It goes without saying that KLM cannot simply accept a proposal that will have such immense consequences for us as a company and for the Netherlands as a whole.”, the airline said in a statement. KLM relies largely on travelers moving from one European flight has a intercontinental flight at Schiphol, indicating that six out of ten KLM passengers transit through Amsterdam Airport Schiphol.
The tax could lead to an increase in ticket prices for passengers transferring to the Amsterdam hub from 6.1% on average and result in a loss of up to 34% of transfer passengers, according to data commissioned by the government in May and produced by CE Delft. The Finance Ministry is studying the implications and feasibility of the tax, a spokesperson said. “The air passenger tax will most likely have a negative effect on the hub function of Schiphol”declared the Prime Minister Mark Rutte during Thursday’s debate on the proposals. The motion, which also includes a tax on private planesmust still be approved by the Senate.
