PASSENGER FEE REDUCED AT TORONTO PEARSON; AIRLINE FEES HELD STEADY

TORONTO, Sept. 30 /CNW/ - The Greater Toronto Airports Authority (GTAA) has approved reductions to the connecting Airport Improvement Fee (AIF) and cargo aircraft landing fees for 2011 at Toronto Pearson. Additionally, aeronautical fees for passenger aircraft have been held in line with 2010 levels.  These changes are being made to enhance Toronto Pearson's competitive position.

The Airport Improvement Fee for passengers connecting through Toronto Pearson will decrease from $8 to $4, effective January 1, 2011.  This is believed to be the first decrease to an AIF in Canada. Increased connecting traffic will allow Toronto Pearson to grow as a global hub, offering more choice to passengers as they move around the world.

The landing fees for cargo aircraft will be reduced by 4.3 per cent on January 1, 2011, which is the third reduction since January of 2010.  Cargo fee reductions are being introduced to encourage growth and to support local businesses that depend on air cargo delivery.  

Terminal charges and landing fees for passenger airlines will be reduced by 8.1 per cent and 4.5 per cent respectively, effective January 1, 2011.  At the same time, the turnaround fee for bridges at Terminal 1 and Terminal 3 that was introduced in July will be increased to $66.66 per flight  as part of a change to Toronto Pearson's fee structure as approved by the airline community.  The overall goal of the passenger landing fee decrease and the increase of this second stage of the turnaround fee is that passenger airlines will see their costs at Toronto Pearson remain stable.

This aeronautical fee structure was developed through a collaborative process with the airlines using Toronto Pearson.  This system will allow flexibility to carriers and will offer a financial benefit to airlines that use the airport's bridges as efficiently as possible.  Toronto Pearson's dedication to working closely with the airlines was recently recognized by the International Air Transport Association, who named Toronto Pearson the world's most improved airport.

"The GTAA has one again demonstrated its continued desire to be among the leaders in Canadian airports in reshaping the way in which they recover costs from their airline partners," said Hugh Dunleavy, WestJet's Executive Vice-President, Strategy and Planning. "Today's announcement will go a long way to support the GTAA's goal of growing its position as a global hub. The reduction in connecting AIF will further support WestJet's efforts to connect our guests to even more points within Canada, the United States, Mexico and the Caribbean, as exemplified by the many new destinations added over the last 12 months, including Bermuda, Cuba, the Bahamas, Turks and Caicos, Miami and St.  Martin. Furthermore, the GTAA's commitment to support streamlined aeronautical cost, which rewards efficiency, will allow WestJet to manage costs while continuing to provide our guests with great low fares."

"Air Canada commends the GTAA for its diligent efforts to continue lowering costs, which support our drive to capitalize on Pearson's advantageous geographic location and transform Toronto into a North American gateway. Already, the relocation of all our operations under one roof, streamlined in-transit processes and other recent improvements have enabled us to increase connecting traffic through the airport and add new flying, including four flights daily to Asia and, in the past year, new service to seven American cities as well as Copenhagen, Athens and Barcelona. These welcome fee reductions, particularly those for connecting passengers, will further allow Air Canada to offer customers more choice as we build Toronto into a global hub for air traffic," said Ben Smith, Executive Vice President and Chief Commercial Officer at Air Canada.

Lloyd McCoomb, President and CEO of the GTAA was proud of today's announcement.  "Toronto Pearson employees have worked hard to make these reductions possible.  By streamlining processes and focusing our efforts on increasing service and revenue, we are able to work with the airlines and make Toronto Pearson even more attractive to airlines and passengers. We are working to increase the number of people who connect through the airport, and these changes are intended to encourage more growth.  Thank you to our employees and airline partners for working together to make these changes possible."

The GTAA is the corporation without share capital that operates Toronto Pearson International Airport. All revenue generated by the GTAA is reinvested back into the airport. In 2009, 30.4 million passengers travelled through Toronto Pearson.

Free Wi-Fi sponsored by Rogers is now available at Toronto Pearson.

For further information:

GTAA Media Office [phone]