In an interview with the weekly L'Obs, French Transport Minister Clément Beaune talks about plans to impose a minimum charge on airlines within the European Union. The aim is to " combating social and environmental dumping" . And encourage rail travel, which is considered to be more environmentally friendly.
A €10 flight? I've never heard of it!
The Minister specified in the interview that he was abnormal to buy tickets at 10 euros. Except that this price is hard to come by today's airlines, even low-cost carriers.
For example, for a one-way flight Easyjet on Paris-Nice on 27 September (reserved until 1/09/2023), thehe lowest ticket price is €32.25excluding additional services. If you include a larger piece of cabin baggage - which also includes priority boarding and a reserved seat - the fare rises immediately to €79.73. This is far from a dumping price.
Here's another example. On a Lyon-Barcelona with Vueling on the same date, the base price was 28,99€. It includes only one piece of hand luggage, which can be slipped under the seat. With hold baggage and a choice of seat, it already costs €64.99. This is the second-cheapest option on Vueling at this date ('Optima' fare). This is also a far cry from the €10 quoted in the interview with Clément Beaune.
Generally in Europe, the call charge-on ultra-low-cost carriers such as Ryanair or Wizz Air is more likely to be in the €15 to €20 range. And it excludes all supplements, from luggage surcharges to seat reservations or credit card payments. Generally speaking, the ticket costs a minimum of €50.
However, the French Minister is keen to discuss this minimum price with his European colleagues. Before Covid, there was talk of a minimum charge of €40. The Scandinavian countries, Germany, Austria and the Netherlands were in favour at the time.
But it is not certain that there is still a consensus. Particularly in countries such as Spain, Poland and Romania, which are heavily dependent on low-cost traffic.. Even in the name of environmental protection...
