5 AAI airports to levy development fees

First instance of AAI-run airports charging fee.

Following in the footsteps of privately-run airports in Delhi, Hyderabad and Bangalore, five more airports — Kolkata, Chennai, Goa, Thiruvananthapuram and Ahmedabad — will also charge development fees from passengers.

It is for the first time that airports being developed by the state-run Airports Authority of India (AAI) will levy the fees.

“Development fees will be also levied on some airports like those in Kolkata, Chennai, Thiruvananthapuram, Ahmedabad and Goa which are being developed by the AAI,” said Civil Aviation Minister Praful Patel on the sidelines of the inauguration of the new domestic passenger terminal at IGI Airport.

Patel, however, did not specify the amount to be levied by the airports and also when these charges would be implemented.

The government had already approved levying of the development fees by airports like Ahmedabad and Thiruvananthapuram. A ministry official had earlier said that Kolkata and Chennai could also seek a similar development fee.

“Development fees can be levied by any airport which is not getting returns commensurate with the investment that has been pumped into modernising it,” said a senior aviation ministry official.

Meanwhile, the Mumbai airport, which is privately-managed, is also expected to get approval for levying airport development fees in the next couple of days, according to a senior government official.

The Delhi airport, run by GMR-led consortium Delhi International Airport Ltd, recently got the approval to levy the fees. This was to bridge the gap in funds created by a bleak resp-onse to GMR’s real estate projects.

Similarly, Mumbai International Airport Ltd (MIAL), the GVK-led consortium operating and modernising the Mumbai airport, has asked for levying similar fees to bridge a gap of Rs 2,000 crore due to slowdown in the real estate business as well as air traffic.

While the Delhi airport has been allowed to levy Rs 200 per domestic passenger and Rs 1,300 per international traveller, MIAL has asked for a fee of Rs 350 from every domestic passenger and Rs 1,000 per international passenger.