airberlin calls for immediate implementation of responsible corrective measures.“The additional burden is costing Germany in terms of economic growth and employment”. Before the German Cabinet session on aviation tax, Germany’s second largest airline has once again called for the abolition of the extra financial burden which was introduced in 2011.
In view of the fact that the tax has since proven to be counterproductive in so many ways, it is now essential to take corrective measures and drop the tax without any replacement, as happened some years ago in the Netherlands.

“A German tax which is applied unilaterally in the global air transport sector is the wrong instrument at the wrong time,” said Hartmut Mehdorn, CEO of airberlin. “Other countries are looking for ways to help their own industry in the light of the European crisis in the airline industry and the Euro crisis. The German government also has a responsibility to relieve German airlines of this additional heavy burden. The tax is costing Germany in terms of economic growth and employment. We are therefore calling on the German government to abolish the tax.”

A number of studies had previously confirmed that the burden caused by the tax to German airlines would be disproportionately high and one-sided. At the same time it has been shown that German passengers have moved to foreign airports, which has led to a decline in growth and loss of turnover for the German air traffic sector. Furthermore, experts agree that the tax has no ecological impact. On the contrary: This will gestroy jobs and put carriers´s financial strength for much needed environmentally friendly investments. The use of environmentally sound technologies and state-of-the-art aircraft, such as the fleet run by airberlin where the average age of the aircraft is five years, currently goes without reward. >From a technological point of view as well, therefore, the aviation tax has no incentive effect whatsoever.

airberlin is Germany’s second largest airline. The company has a workforce of 9,200 employees. Each year, airberlin receives over 10 awards for service and quality. The fleet comprises 165 aircraft with an average age of five years, making it one of the most modern fleets in Europe. The airline’s state-of-the-art jets are highly fuel efficient, which contributes toward a long-term reduction in pollution emissions from aircraft. As one of the major European airlines, airberlin flies to 162 destinations in 40 countries. In 2011, over 35 million passengers were transported. In December 2011, airberlin entered into a strategic partnership with Etihad Airways. Since 20th March 2012, airberlin has been a full member of the global airline alliance oneworld®. airberlin operates codeshare flights with oneworld members American Airlines, British Airways, Finnair, Iberia, Royal Jordanian, S7 Airlines and Japan Airlines.