Airport fees and charges can cover a wide spectrum of variables. They are generally split between aeronautical charges (those that aircraft operators pay) and non-aeronautical (from non-aviation activities such as passenger drop off fees). RDC is the world’s leading provider of airport-levied aeronautical fees, so that will be our focus for this article.
These fees and charges can be found in documents called ‘Schedule of Charges and Terms & Conditions of Use’ or ‘Conditions of Use’ and detail the terms and conditions that apply to flights operating at the airport. These fees and charges are ultimately passed on to the end user, in the case of a passenger airline through the ticket price or alternatively through the cost of sending a parcel or cargo by air.
Airport fees and charges can vary greatly between airports both in terms of complexity (as we have previously looked at Q. How Complex Can an Airport’s Charges Be?) and cost with factors such as aircraft type, engines, destination, season and time of day being used in charge calculations.
Whilst how these charges are named can vary, these high-level categories below highlight the type of fees and charges airlines and aircraft operators could be charged for operating to/from an airport.
Runway charges
Fees imposed by the airport for using runways and taxiways, typically applied when an aircraft lands or arrives.
Passenger charges
Per passenger fees charged by the airport. These are billed to the airline, which usually incorporates the cost into the passenger’s ticket price.
Security costs
Charges applied by the airport to cover the security services it provides, including personnel, screening systems, and related equipment.
Infrastructure charges
Fees for using airport facilities such as terminals, check-in areas, baggage systems, and airbridges.
Parking charges
Costs associated with parking an aircraft at the airport. These are usually based on the length of time parked and aircraft size or weight.
Environmental charges
Fees linked to an aircraft’s environmental impact, particularly noise and emissions. Aircraft are typically grouped into categories, with charges varying by their impact level.
Terminal navigation charges
Fees for air traffic control services provided within airport controlled airspace. These may be levied by the airport, government, or an external service provider.
In addition to the above there are also Government passenger taxes, in some cases, these can be charged by the airport.
Government passenger taxes
Taxes applied on a per passenger basis, often varying by destination or travel class. These are imposed by national governments and may apply to all airports within the country or to specific airports. Example of such a tax is UK Air Passenger Duty (APD)
A word on en-route navigation fees...
Whilst not charged by airports, it’s worth noting that aircraft operators also pay en-route air navigation charges to fly between airports, also known as overflight fees. These are charged for air traffic control services used while flying through controlled airspace. They are set by the state and usually depend on distance flown and aircraft weight.
If you are interested in finding out more about these charges you might find this article interesting What are overflight fees and en-route air navigation charges?
Summary
Airports levy operational fees and charges to airlines to cover the use of runways, terminals, airspace services, security, aircraft parking and environmental impacts. These charges support safe airport operations, ability to maintain facilities and manage air traffic efficiently.
These charges represent just one area of an airline’s cost base and it is essential for both the airline and airport to use accurate airline specific aircraft data when calculating.
RDC Aviation maintains AirportCharges, the world’s largest database of runway, passenger, and en-route navigation fees. Aircraft operators, airports and researchers trust AirportCharges to help them find, interpret, and scenario plan at more than 3,000 airports globally.
To facilitate accurate aircraft data being used by airports and Air Navigation Service Providers (ANSPs), we developed LOOP. LOOP allows airlines to easily share their aircraft fleet data with stakeholders and in turn provides a single source of information - essential for accurate aircraft billing.
Banner image by Safwan Mahmud on Unsplash
