Germany’s flight tax to ground six million passengers

Germany stands to lose approximately six million passengers and 15,000 jobs with the introduction of the new flight tax.

Klaus Laepple, president, German Tourism Federation (BTW), as also president of the German Travel Association (DRV) described the tax as a “financial nightmare” at the recent German Tourism Summit in Berlin.

He reminded the government of its promise in a coalition agreement to support the German aviation sector. Laepple also asked the government to not damage the industry’s gradual recovery from the financial recession by now imposing new costs.

In response, Peter Ramsauer, German Transport Minister, said that there would be an evaluation of the tax next year, while also clarifying that the tax was not his “invention”.

According to a report commissioned by the BTW, the number of passengers at German airports will drop by about six million passengers due to the tax, threatening 15,000 jobs. Airlines and tour operators have been forced to collect the tax since the start of September for passenger flights from January 2011 onwards.

Some carriers are claiming they sold seats to tour operators before the tax was imposed, and so hope to avoid the same, however, officials in Berlin counter that by stating that the date of ticket sales to customers is the decisive factor, and not when seat capacity was sold to operators.