In connection with the introduction of the aviation tax just over a year ago, compensation was promised to airports in Norrland that were losing passengers. But payments are delayed.
SEK 120 million was allocated to compensate airports in Northern Sweden when the tax was introduced. There are ten local/regional airports in Norrland that are covered by the government's compensation for the aviation tax. Four in Västerbotten County: Skellefteå, Lycksele, Vilhelmina and Hemavan/Tärnaby.
But it is important to meet certain requirements to be granted compensation.
– The compensation is to provide support if it turns out that 60 kronor per ticket has resulted in reduced travel. If you can show that it has resulted in reduced travel, you should of course be compensated for it, says Tomas Eneroth, (S) Minister of Infrastructure.
The tax for domestic flights is 60 SEK per ticket. For long-haul flights, it can amount to a maximum of 400 SEK.
Eneroth also says that one year is too short a time to determine whether flying has decreased due to the tax.
At Skellefteå Airport They say they can easily prove that they have been hit hard by the tax. Norwegian left the airport in January and they cited the flight tax as one of the reasons.
– We estimate that we will lose between 100 to 150,000 travelers. That is a considerable amount, says Robert Lindberg, airport manager at Skellefteå Airport.
The loss corresponds to approximately a quarter of the passengers from the airport.
Source: sverigesradio.se
