No comeback for super cheap flights, Transavia CEO says

Super cheap flights, like 25 euro tickets to Spain, are definitely a thing of the past at Transavia, CEO Marcel de Nooijer of Transavia Nederland said to NRC. Not so much for climate considerations, but because the costs are piling up, he said.

“We pass on the higher costs in the rates. Take the sharp increase in the airport charges that we have to pay Schiphol. And the significant increase in the Dutch eco-tax from 7.85 euros to 26.45 euros per ticket. Plus the higher fuel costs and the salary costs, also in handling,” De Nooijer said in an interview with the newspaper.

He can’t say how much ticket prices will increase because that’s a matter of supply and demand. “But it is clear that tickets are more expensive than last year. We used to advertise rates of around 25 euros. You won’t see those kinds of amounts again.”

De Nooijer described 2022 as “an eventful year with two faces.” On the one hand, people had “a massive need” to fly again. “The aviation recovery had been stronger than many expected.” On the other hand, airlines - Transavia included - faced “quite a lot of logistical challenges” at Schiphol. He estimates that Transavia lost about 55 million euros to the Schiphol chaos.

De Nooijer regrets that so many passengers suffered under Schiphol’s problems and that it slowed down’ Transavia’s recovery. “Transavia Nederland is again a plus this year after two very loss-making years - and that plus could have been much bigger. Anyway, I am an optimist. The operational problems at Schiphol are known, they are being worked on, and I assume we will have a more normal summer next year.”

He called the government’s plan to decrease the flight movements at Schiphol “dogmatic.” According to De Nooijer, new aircraft are quiet enough to allow the Amsterdam airport to continue at 500,000 flight movements per year. Airlines also invested in making their planes more sustainable, and the government now gives them less chance to make that money back, he said.

Transavia Nederland may also look into flying more from Brussels and less from Schiphol, De Nooijer said, referring to Corendon’s announcement earlier this week.