When the Netherlands introduced a departure tax in 2008, many travellers crossed the border to depart from German or Belgian airports, the IATA Global Media Day was told.
Willie Walsh told the annual conference of the Irish Travel Agents Association in Geneva that governments often present these levies as environmental tools when they serve primarily as revenue-raising measures. He pointed to the recent reversal of certain taxes in the United Kingdom as evidence that political honesty about fiscal motives is increasing. Walsh noted that a struggling economy prompts governments to seek additional revenue through aviation, whereas a growing economy might adopt a more responsible approach that supports rather than hinders growth.
Historical examples demonstrate that passengers and airlines quickly find ways to avoid travel taxes. Similar patterns emerged wherever unilateral taxes appeared. People prove willing to travel longer distances by car or train to reach untaxed airports, which shifts emissions from air to road without overall reduction.
The aviation industry opposes the introduction of air travel taxes justified on environmental grounds. Taxes fail to reduce CO2 emissions from aircraft because flights continue to operate regardless of passenger numbers.
Instead, such measures decrease the number of people able to afford flights while generating no environmental benefit. Evidence from existing schemes shows that taxation drives behavioural changes that avoid the tax rather than lower emissions.
Stuard Fox told the media delegates that governments frequently commission studies that predict behavioural change without examining real-world outcomes from previous schemes. The industry plans to continue highlighting these risks throughout 2026, emphasising that taxation reduces accessibility to air travel while failing to deliver environmental gains. Proper assessment of leakage risks remains essential before any new tax is imposed.
Key takeaways from the briefing include the absence of environmental benefit from flight taxes, the proven tendency of passengers to avoid unilateral levies, and the need for governments to conduct realistic impact assessments. Aviation efficiency improvements have already lowered emissions per passenger; taxation merely restricts mobility for lower-income travellers.
“Taxation doesn’t reduce CO2, taxation reduces the number of people who are able to travel. The flights still operate and just operate with fewer people on them – there is zero environmental benefit. It’s just a tax to raise revenue because the English economy is in slow motion.”
