Low fares, high taxes

Over the past days a number of letters were published focusing on low-cost airlines.

Lately, Italian airline Meridiana announced it will start an operation to Malta offering low fares.

BritishJet has also been advertising flights to/from Malta at low rates.

But are these airlines really offering low-cost flights? The answer is no.

When flying Meridiana you can get relatively cheap fares but the taxes are up to three times the fare. The picture looks very similar with BritishJet.

The lowest fares these two air carriers offer are Lm14 or €29 one way (fare only). These fares are absolutely competitive with those of Ryanair, Germanwings, EasyJet and other real low-cost airlines.

However, the taxes that are charged for flights to and from Malta are so extraordinarily high that when adding these, you can no longer talk of low-cost flights. Excessive landing fees at Malta International Airport and the Maltese government's protectionism are the main reasons for this.

Flights (fares and taxes) with low-cost airlines from the UK, Germany or Holland to a destination in Italy, Spain or Portugal are 35 to 55 per cent cheaper than the so-called low-cost flights to Malta. With the government's and MIA's policy they will support and boost tourism in other Mediterranean countries, but not in Malta.