Lufthansa faces probe by EC over GDS booking fee
Ian Taylor
ian.taylor@travelweekly.co.uk
The European Commission is investigating whether Lufthansa’s charge for GDS bookings, imposed two years ago, breaches EU rules and has similar plans by British Airways and Iberia in its sights.
European transport commissioner Violeta Bulc confirmed the investigation into the German airline group in a statement to the European Parliament on Wednesday. Responding to a question,
Bulc said: “The commission is indeed investigating whether the €16 distribution cost charge introduced by the Lufthansa Group on bookings through a computerised reservation system breaches the provisions of Regulation EC 80/2009 on a Code of Conduct for Computerised Reservation Systems. “Commission services are
working towards a final assessment and a decision will be taken once
”The commission is investigating whether Lufthansa’s €16 charge breaches Regulation EC 80/2009”
this assessment is completed.” The EC’s 2009 regulation
on computerised reservation systems, or global distribution systems (GDSs), aimed to ensure “air services by all airlines are displayed in a non-discriminatory way on travel agencies’ computer screens . . . as these distribution channels might influence the consumer choice”. It comprised an amendment to
an earlier regulation of 1989. Lufthansa imposed a €16 charge
on all GDS bookings in September 2015. The airline group has since claimed its bookings were largely unaffected, although its costs of GDS distribution rose in the following year – despite the additional income from the charges. The European Technology and
LUFTHANSA: The EC is assessing the legality of carrier’s GDS fee
Travel Services Association, which represents GDS companies and major online travel agents (OTAs), filed a formal complaint to the EC soon after the fee was imposed. IAG-owned British Airways
and Iberia plan to impose a GDS booking fee of their own from November 1. The charge of €9.50 will be added to all bookings through GDSs. At the time Lufthansa imposed
its fee, the airline conceded that 70% of its global bookings were made through GDSs. Bulc said: “The commission
is aware of the decision by International Airlines Group to introduce a surcharge for tickets booked for British Airways and Iberia flights through a computerised reservation system.” Any decision to penalise Lufthansa would have implications for BA and Iberia.
Airline growth rate weakens slightly in July
Global airline passenger demand tailed off in July over the previous month. New figures from Iata show
total revenue passenger kilometres rose 6.8% over the same month last year, down from the 7.7% growth recorded in June. A record high load factor
in July showed the appetite for air travel remained “very
TRAFFIC: European airlines saw a 7.5% rise in carryings in July
strong”, said Iata director general and chief executive Alexandre de Juniac. European carriers posted
a 7.5% increase in traffic for July compared with a year ago, down from 8.8% annual growth in June. Capacity rose 5.9% and the load factor climbed 1.3 percentage points to 88.7%, the highest of all regions.
Emirates to revive four US routes by next summer
Emirates plans to restore services to the US axed following a cabin ban on laptops on flights from the Middle East and Turkey this year. The March ban triggered a fall in passengers, prompting Emirates to cut flights to five US cities from May. The US lifted the ban in July following new security regimes at affected airports. Emirates president Sir Tim Clark
said traffic to the US had recovered “almost to previous levels”. Announcing the move in London, he said: “It has been a good story, a lot better than we thought it would be. It has settled now. People are getting used to the new [security] protocols.” Clark said the carrier would
restore flights to Boston, Seattle, Los Angeles and Fort Lauderdale within “six to nine months”. But he raised doubts about
Emirates’ plans to purchase more Airbus A380 superjumbos. Airbus deepened doubts about
the A380’s future in July when it announced it would cut production to one per month next year and to eight aircraft a year in 2019, down from 15 this year and 28 in 2016. The manufacturer conceded
it will lose money producing the aircraft, which can have 500-plus seats. Emirates has almost 100 A380s in operation, nearly half the entire global A380s fleet, and an additional 100 on order.
BAN: A US block on laptops on flights from Mid-East hit demand
14 September 2017
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