Strike in the airline sector Thursday, November 14, against “deadly taxation”

AIRLINE – After the SNCF, airline pilots. The national union of airline pilots (SNPL) is calling for a strike and a rally this Thursday, November 14 in front of the National Assembly after the vote by the deputies for an increase in taxation on air transport.

“Against the government's desire to take an additional billion per year from the airline sector, we are calling on pilots but also all employees in the airline sector to mobilize on November 14”declared this Sunday, November 10, a spokesperson for the ultra-majority union among pilots. “We call for a rally near the National Assembly at the end of the morning”we added.

In a joint press release sent this Sunday at the end of the day, several other unions in the sector – UNSA transport, UNSA PNC, CFE-CGC FNEMA, UNAC, SNPNC-FO and FEETS-FO – announced that 'they called “all employees of the airline sector to come and demonstrate their disagreement with this lethal taxation for jobs before the National Assembly on November 14”. “This project is an unprecedented attack on the airline sector in France, its jobs, its competitiveness and its sustainability”they denounce.

The deputies, who are examining the draft 2025 budget, approved on Friday the increase in taxation on air transport proposed by the government, however limiting its duration to one year and excluding Overseas and Corsica from the system . This amendment is supposed to increase air transport taxation by one billion euros with entry into force on January 1, 2025.

An increase in the tax on plane tickets

Concretely, this system will increase the tax rates on plane tickets. For economy class flights, the increase will be from 2.60 euros per passenger to 9.50 euros for a European destination, from 7.50 euros to 15 euros for intermediate destinations, and from 7.50 euros to 40 euros for distant destinations, according to the general rapporteur of the Budget, Charles de Courson.

Friday evening, the general director of Air France-KLM Benjamin Smith reaffirmed his opposition and estimated that by excluding the overseas territories and Corsica from this tax increase, the deputies had ” recognized “ the risks of such a measure for “the competitiveness of French companies”.

The SNPL denounces “a three-fold increase in this tax, without consultation of stakeholders in the sector having taken place”. “While many players in the aviation sector are barely recovering from the prolonged effects of the Covid-19 crisis period, this additional imposition will ultimately lead to tens of thousands of job losses in France”says the union, which asks the government to back down.

This Sunday, the Minister of Transport François Durovray defended this tax increase on franceinfo: “this tax has both the virtue of contributing to the restoration of State accounts, but also an environmental aim” due to carbon emissions from aviation. Calling for “work towards a virtuous system”he estimated that this tax could encourage airlines “to put more sustainable fuel in planes”welcoming the efforts already undertaken by the French aeronautical industry, but without advancing any direction regarding the availability of sustainable fuel.

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