Transit fliers in city to pay user charges?

NEW DELHI: In a move that could increase your airfares, the Mumbai International Airport Limited (MIAL) wants the aviation ministry to amend rules that exempt transit passengers from paying user charges and fees if their connecting flight is within 24 hours of their arrival.

In India, a passenger is treated in transit or transfer if the onward travel journey is within 24 hours from arrival at an airport and is part of the same ticket.

At present, transit passengers don’t pay the charges and fees of the particular airport they are transiting from if their connecting flight is within 24 hours of their arrival. MIAL, the GVK-led consortium that operates the Mumbai airport, has asked the ministry to reduce the exempted time to six hours.

Airlines say a change of rules will have a direct impact on fares. “Airport charges and fees like user development fee (UDF), development fee (DF) and passenger service fees (PSF) are included in the ticket cost. Passengers already pay these charges at airports they depart from and arrive at. UDF can be as high as Rs1,270 at some airports,” said an airline official.

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