Thiruvananthapuram Airport Tariff Hike: Brittas Raises Concerns

New Delhi, Jun 26 (PTI) Rajya Sabha member John Brittas on Wednesday raised concerns about the hike in tariffs for the Thiruvananthapuram international airport and sought the civil aviation ministry's intervention to review the revisions.

The Airport Economic Regulatory Authority (AERA) has approved revisions in tariffs, including higher User Development Fee (UDF) and landing charges, for the airport.

The revised tariffs will be effective from July 1 for the airport, which is managed by Adani Airport Holdings Ltd.

In a letter to Civil Aviation Minister K Rammohan Naidu, Brittas has expressed grave concerns over "the recent humongous tariff revisions" at the airport in Kerala's capital.

He has urged the minister to instruct the concerned authorities to take urgent steps to review these astronomical tariff revisions so as to safeguard the interests of passengers and the airport against disproportionate financial strains.

According to him, the substantial increases in UDF and other charges will place a heavy burden on passengers and airlines, potentially reducing the accessibility and affordability of air travel for the citizens of southern Kerala and beyond.

Further, Brittas claimed that the airport operator is looking to extract maximum revenue from passengers by significantly increasing the UDF and other charges as well as underreporting non-operational revenue, which would otherwise help in cross-subsidising passenger fares.

"Such unscrupulous business practices must be addressed promptly to protect the interests of passengers," he said in the letter.