Majority of Dutch in favor of minimum price limit for flights

55 percent of Dutch travelers are okay with a minimum price limit set on airline tickets. 62 percent are willing to pay more for a ticket if part of the price is used to offset CO2 emissions caused by the flight, according to a survey by Vleigtickets.nl among 2,500 Netherlands residents.

Parliamentarians Jan Paternotte (D66) and Eppo Bruins (ChristenUnie) recently called for a minimum price to be set on airfare, to prevent airlines from selling tickets at below cost in order to fill planes and keep routes now that the coronavirus crisis is reaching a stage where flights are possible again. They proposed limiting airfare to no less than 35 euros per ticket.

Earlier this month Austria announced that it is limiting air tickets to no less than 40 euros each. France also showed interest in the idea.

According to Vliegtickets.nl, the prices for plane tickets to various destinations in Europe decreased by up to 25 percent compared to last year. "The number of flights and the competition is increasing slowly at the moment. It is logical that the prices are now under pressure," the company said.

Last week, Minister Cora van Nieuwenhuizen of Infrastructure said that there are many legal complications to putting a minimum limit on airfare. According to her, European rules stand in the way of such a measure.

Low-price airlines EasyJet and Transavia are also against the measure. According to them, a minimum price won't have much effect on CO2 emissions and has no environmental benefits.