Blame traded over Kosovo's sky high airfares

While passengers complain that airlines charge far too much for flights, the airlines are blaming the airport. The growing number of airline operators serving Pristina's international airport, recently renamed after Kosovar fighter Adem Jashari, has failed to lower the cost of what many consider excessive airfares. Passengers complain that tickets to major destinations from Pristina are often three or four times more expensive than tickets from equivalent destinations in the Balkans. "In April, a return ticket to Vienna cost me over 600 euro, and while I was there I met people from Serbia who told me that they had paid only 180 euro from Belgrade," Naim from Pristina complained.

He said that airfares from Pristina to other European countries, such as Switzerland and Britain, are also far higher than they need be. Airlines are calling on the government to lower airport taxes, saying the cut would be passed on to passengers in the form of cheaper tickets.But officials at Pristina airport deny that taxes are too high, arguing that the airlines are trying to hang on to their bumper profits. Albion Idrizi, manager of British Airways in Kosovo, told Balkan Insight that prices are based simply on cost and demand. He said the government could help lower costs for airlines and passengers alike by bringing local taxes into line with international levies. Idrizi said annual taxes on airlines, paid in the form of permits for the municipality of Lipjan, where the airport is located, are higher than anywhere else in the world.

In neighbouring countries, he added, airlines pay far less or do not have to pay taxes at all. "Taxes at Pristina International Airport are very high, especially considering the quality and services they offer passengers and airline companies," Idrizi said. Lower costs and better facilities, he argued, would encourage members of the large diaspora to return home more often. "This would increase tourist income," he said. Altin Ahmeti, airport spokesman, dismissed BA’s claims. “Including all taxes, taxes on passenger tickets do not come to more than 30 to 34 euro, depending on the type of plane and the number of seats," Ahmeti said. According to him, the airlines are blaming airport taxes in order to justify their high charges. The number of flights to and from Pristina airport this year has increased by 10 to 15 per cent, he said, and he expects the market to grow by 20 to 30 per cent next year. "Many new companies have entered the market and have started to offer lower prices, like easyJet, which is known for its cheap prices," Ahmeti said. Despite the chorus of complaints about high flight prices, the Ministry of Transport said it could not interfere. "The ministry has licensed new companies, creating stronger competition in the market," Endrit Shala, advisor to the outgoing minister of Transport, Fatmir Limaj, said. "But the government can't interfere in the work of companies to force them to cut flight prices in any way."

News source: Balkan Insight link: article