Page 8 - AAA JULY-AUGUST 2012 Online Magazine

NEWS

AIDS tax on the way?

Plans are being made for India to
Costly cracks introduce an air ticket tax to help fund

Dubai’s Emirates Airline has lost nearly He described “enormous” operational cheap HIV/AIDS medicines, according to
US$100 million thanks to wing cracks problems working around the airtime the United Nations. “Since air traffic is
in its A380 fleet, according to reports. loss, and admitted the company was very high in India, the small amount of
Emirates, a lead A380 customer, had to looking for some kind of compensation levy [would make] a huge difference to
ground six A380s while inspections were from Airbus. “No one is paying anything the amount of drugs we can purchase,”
carried out. Airline president Tim Clark at the moment,” he added. “But the A380 UNITAID executive director Denis Broun
complained that this meant 30% of the is a very successful airplane for us, and it said. The scheme already exists in South
company’s A380 fleet was out of action. won’t stop us from getting more.” Korea, Niger, Mali and other countries
and is generating US$200 million
annually. Broun proposes a US$0.20
Tax cuts? tax on domestic flights and US$1 on
India’s Civil Aviation ministry has the fuel tax should allow Indian carriers international flights. Discussions were
proposed cutting down high state to become competitive on domestic at a very early stage, he added. “It would
taxes on jet fuel that can in certain routes, and compete better with be a good thing for India,” he said. “First
cases amount to to up to 35% of airline international carriers. As ticket prices of all, Indian patients benefit - 35,000
operating costs. This should bring down soar, the ministry has also proposed the Indian children are treated for HIV using
costs for ailing domestic airlines with a abolishing of service tax on air travel. drugs paid for by UNITAID.” As he noted,
cumulative debt of US$20 billion. The Service tax, including fuel surcharge, is UNITAID buys most of its drugs from
ministry has sought reducing state taxes currently 10.3% of the total fare for any India, so the money would go back into
on jet fuel to a uniform 4%. Reduction in economy ticket on international flights. the Indian economy.

PROFILE
Following the promotion of previous CEO Tom Enders, Fabrice Brégier has taken over as Airbus
President and CEO. He started his career as a test engineer at a nuclear power station, before moving
briefly to Japan in 1984. In 1986 he moved to government work, taking a post in the Alsace Ministry of
Industry, following that with spells as ministry advisor and at Matra Défense. Having made to move
to aerospace, he went on to consolidate his career in the air as CEO at the joint Matra BAe Dynamics
operation, then moved to missile company MBDA as CEO of MBDA. In 2003, he moved to Eurocopter
and was appointed Head of EADS’s Eurocopter before starting work at Airbus as COO in October 2006.
Brégier has pledged more planes, more integration and an expansion of Airbus’s global footprint.

8 ASIAN AIRLINES & AIRPORTS JULY / AUGUST 2012 WWW.ASIANAIRLINES-AIRPORTS.COM