Tax cuts in prospect: Merz gives hope to the aviation industry

High taxes and fees are slowing down Germany as an aviation location. Airlines are withdrawing aircraft and connections are being canceled. Now the federal government is taking up the industry's demands: Chancellor Merz is promising further relief from aviation tax.

Chancellor Friedrich Merz wants to further reduce air traffic taxes in Germany. The black-red federal government reversed the increase in air traffic tax on July 1st, said Merz at the Berlin Chamber of Industry and Commerce. “The second part must follow,” said the CDU leader when asked whether the aviation tax could not be completely abolished. “We are not doing ourselves any favors with this burden, because air traffic in Germany is switching to locations outside the Federal Republic of Germany,” added Merz. Sales would then be made there. “I want us to get this corrected,” he added, without giving details. This would have an impact on the federal budget.

The aviation lobby has long complained that the costs of flying in Germany are too high. This is the reason why the industry is lagging so far behind in catching up across Europe since the Corona crisis. Low-cost airlines such as the Irish Ryanair and the British Easyjet have reduced their flight offerings in Germany because of the high costs.

The airport association ADV immediately welcomed Merz's "clear statements" about strengthening the air traffic location. Its commitment to a further reduction in aviation tax is an important and encouraging signal. “The Chancellor recognizes that Germany is losing flight connections, passengers and added value to foreign competitors due to excessive location costs,” said ADV Managing Director Ralph Beisel. Now it is important to consistently continue the relief course we have taken.

The Federal Association of the German Aviation Industry (BDL) declared it necessary to halve taxes and fees for air traffic. “Otherwise more routes will be canceled and aircraft will be withdrawn from Germany,” warned BDL managing director Joachim Lang.

Ryanair welcomed the fact that Merz was making the high costs a top priority. The Chancellor must now take consistent action. The aviation tax must be abolished and the state costs for aviation security and air traffic control should be at least halved, said a spokesman. "If Germany consistently reduces its high location costs, Ryanair will invest more heavily in growth, additional aircraft and new connections, especially at regional airports."

Merz: Berlin needs to be better connected

Merz also criticized the lack of funding for the federal capital's airport connections. The federal government has now ensured that the Emirates airline is allowed to fly to Berlin as another airport in Germany. “I would have liked a different airport policy in Berlin year and day ago,” criticized the Chancellor. However, Emirates itself recently announced that it would not be flying to Berlin for the time being.

“There is no other country in the world that treats its capital as miserably badly when it comes to airport facilities as the city of Berlin,” said Merz. With regard to the closure of Tempelhof and Tegel airports, he added: "There is no other capital in the world that is closing four of the existing six runways without replacement." Overall, Berlin now needs to be better connected again “on all transport routes”. "That's what we want to do. It's a task that will cost us years of investment."