Flybe Taxes and Charges

TrishaM

I have just booked a flight from Belfast to Exeter return. The cost of the flight was nothing just taxes to pay. Can anyone tell me why the taxes and charges out of Belfast is £10.50 and the charges out of Exeter is £31? can't work this out. Seems that Flybe are indirectly charging for the flights. Has anyone else come across this?

pin

Maybe because Exeter airport charges more taxes to the airlines compared to Belfast Airport?

TrishaM

Maybe so, but when you check flights to Bristol with Easyjet and Flybe, Flybes' taxes are always more expensive for the same trip.

Woby_Tide

it's taxes and charges, maybe flybe levies a higher fuel surcharge than Easyjet and other passenger taxes etc.

Also flying from Bristol, Easyjet and Flybe fly to different airports in Belfast

woznmar_2

This is an email I sent to Flybe 10 days ago and still have not received a reply

Dear Flybe,
I am curious about the taxes you pass on to us for flights between Bristol and Toulouse! Having recently bought a house near Toulouse my wife and I and friends have flown with you on this route several times and we have been very happy with the service and the costs (always wanting to pay less of course). We understood that the taxes you have to pass on are imposed by the airports themselves and that the ones in question are relatively big and therefore a tax of £49 per person seemed reasonable.
But now Easy Jet have started to fly this same route and not only are their fares considerably cheaper than yours, the tax they charge per person is only £14!!! A difference of £35!!!
There are 2 possible reasons for this;
1. You are being overcharged by the airports
2. You are overcharging us

There may be another reason which I would be delighted to know. Perhaps you can help!

Kind regards from an ex-Flybe passenger

alanrowell

Will people learn the difference between taxes & charges - taxes are imposed by the government and are about £5. Everything else is a charge and is imposed by the airline / airport & various other bodies

WiseInvestor_2

Airlines like easyJet will benefit from 'economies of scale' - ie. the more routes/services you operate, the further split the costs become and the better bargaining power you possess with suppliers (eg fuel). Trying to compare airlines of totally different sizes is therefore impossible.

The fees and charges do differ between airlines at the same airport as again, the larger ones are more valuable to the airport operator and can therefore barter a better deal.

If you consider the actual cost of buying aircraft/fuel, employing and training pilots etc it's really quite incredible just how cheap flying is nowadays. There comes a point at which low prices become unsustainable and result either in corner-cutting (not wise!) or bankruptcy - either way the customer loses out.