Caribbean governments are being encouraged to revisit the level of taxation on airline tickets.
The issue came up earlier this week as LIAT, Air Antilles and Winair announced the CaribSKY alliance which will see them using codeshares and interline agreements to make regional travel easier and cheaper.
The event was held at La Creole Beach Hotel & Spa in Guadeloupe.
LIAT’s chief executive officer Julie Reifer-Jones said taxation was a “ticklish issue” but a solution had to be found.
She said a recent study showed that intra-regional travel had declined significantly. LIAT, she said, was now moving 750 000 passengers annually in comparison to one million in the past.
“When we tried to get behind the numbers and look at some of the factors impacting that decline, the taxes – and this includes both airport and the taxes directly from the government – are acting as a significant deterrent to travel across the region.
“Because we are connecting passengers across several territories, we are actually picking up taxes from three or four territories every time somebody flies from one destination to the next and we also have the issue of in transit taxes because we’re stopping at St Maarten or we’re stopping in St Vincent or we’re stopping in Barbados,” Reifer-Jones said.
The CEO revealed that while LIAT had raised its base fare by about three per cent between 2009 and 2016, taxes had increased by about 56 per cent.
“What the passenger sees is not the base fare. They are going to see the total package and their reaction to buying a ticket to travel to Guadeloupe or travel to Dominica is going to be impacted by that total bottom line picture,” she said.
Reifer-Jones said regional government should be implored to help boost regional travel.
“I think that in this conversation we all have to try to influence our governments to make a commitment to the region … and to put some measures in place that will help to stimulate that intra-regional travel because when it happens there will be economic growth and we will all benefit,” she said.
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Well u probably the 1000th CEO and all have been saying the same shit …….we need a solution simple simple
Only now she realize that?? TALK IS CHEAP!!!
DO SOMETHING DAMMIT!
Liat cash strapped… governments across the region cash strapped. It would be interesting to see if any would reduce taxes.
Let the winer boys and the winer girls pay all the taxes when they travel for carnivals etc. Need to see sensitivity regarding taxes when persons travel for more essential means.
We need more competing airlines in the region and then we will see prices tumble as in the days of Caribbean Star and Caribbean Sun. Cheaper airfares would translate to increase travel thus the airlines and regional governments stands to benefit, but the powers that be just loves to put burdens on the small man.
While that layman explanation may make sense, it does not mean that increased competition will solve problems. While it will be lower airfares to most, the airlines themselves will suffer. The Caribbean market is a low density high cost market. Neither Caribbean Star/Sun or LIAT were making any profit. The cost of operation is the real issue here compounded by high govt taxes, fees, labour costs, ancillary fees such as security etc.
CUT THE TAXES! I just tried to book a flight from barbados to grenada. Base fare is 99$, but taxes and fees are additional 120$, that is insane- so taxes and fees are higher than the actual base fare of the flight? 220$ for a one-way short flight, with astronomical taxes/fees? C’mon now that’s crazy.No wonder why they are struggling.
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