Fraport strengthens pioneering role by expanding the range of airport charges based on noise categories – Further incentive for deploying low-noise aircraft.
FRA. – Fraport AG, the Frankfurt Airport (FRA) company, will reward airlines at FRA – if they deploy modern, low-noise aircraft on international routes and achieve passenger growth of more than one percent per year – with retroactive reductions in airport charges during 2014 and 2015. Furthermore, each subsequent year will be rewarded with an additional incentive sum, if the airline maintains the previous year’s growth in terms of the absolute number of passengers. Fraport’s new incentive program has been approved by the Hessian Ministry of Economics, Transport and Urban Development. Effective January 1, 2014, this program will become an official part of FRA’s Airport Charges Regulation.
“Fraport is already a global leader in establishing a greater range in airport charges based on noise categories. Quiet aircraft are charged less, while loud aircraft pay significantly more. This additional incentive program underscores how we consistently use airport charges as a way to reward airlines that deploy the quietest aircraft possible,” explained Fraport AG’s executive board chairman Dr. Stefan Schulte. Domestic traffic has been intentionally excluded from the new program, because FRA intends to strengthen European and international traffic and hence its role as an intercontinental hub.
Passenger growth is measured in each case on the basis of the previous year’s volume – with continental and intercontinental traffic treated separately. In the respective traffic segment, an airline is required to transport at least 7,500 departing passengers and achieve at least one percent growth each year. If these criteria are met, Fraport AG will refund at the end of 2014 and/or 2015 a certain growth-dependent amount to the airline as an incentive for each additional passenger. Incentives are awarded on a sliding scale from 4 to 10 euros per passenger. The higher an airline’s passenger growth increase, the higher the amount of the incentive per passenger to be paid. Furthermore, the incentive amount is higher for intercontinental passengers than for continental passengers.
Fraport only takes into consideration the portion of passenger growth that the airline achieves using low-noise aircraft types. For continental routes, this means aircraft types classified within noise categories 1 through 11. For intercontinental routes, this means aircraft types grouped in noise categories 1 through 12. Frankfurt Airport has a total of 16 aircraft noise categories. Airlines that did not fly to Frankfurt Airport during the past two consecutive timetables are considered “new entrants”. Thus, for each new route in the FRA schedule these airlines will receive the maximum incentive for each departing passenger exceeding the minimum of 7,500 passengers in the first year. When these “new entrants” serve an existing route, the amount of the incentive reduces by 50 percent. Existing routes are defined as all routes that have already been served by any airline in the Summer Timetable 2013 or Winter Timetable 2013/2014.
Vicky is the co-founder of TravelDailyNews Media Network where she is the Editor-in Chief. She is also responsible for the daily operation and the financial policy. She holds a Bachelor's degree in Tourism Business Administration from the Technical University of Athens and a Master in Business Administration (MBA) from the University of Wales.
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