Passengers flying to and from Europe face higher fares from next year, and anyone flying to Japan or Asia will pay sharply more than those staying within Europe or going to the Middle East, thanks to new rules from the European Union in pursuit of an oxymoron, making air travel environmentally friendly.
Unless there is an unlikely change of heart by "Eurocrats" and their political bosses, or a legal hitch or a last-minute political deal, the EU will begin imposing its complex new charges on carbon-dioxide emissions from January. Plans for the tax were boosted this month when the European Court of Justice's advocate general advised that the plan does not infringe the sovereignty of third countries and complies with aviation agreements. The court follows such advice in 90 percent of cases.
The U.S. Air Transport Association and the two major U.S. airlines, United Continental Holdings and American Airlines, are challenging the EU plan in the court. The airlines' trade body, the International Air Transport Association, is unhappy, and China has joined the outcry. The scheme may add $30 to the price of a ticket, and even more for passengers traveling to or from Japan in long-haul flights. Estimated costs of the scheme to airlines start at ?2.5 billion next year and rising to ?20 billion by 2020, more than enough to wipe out all the profits of all the world's airlines. No doubt the tax will be passed on to passengers in ticket prices.