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I looked up a roundtrip fare to Dubai on Lufthansa from Philly. Almost half of the $1319 fare goes to “Taxes, fees, and carrier charges”. The airline gets just $662. So the people who pat you down get as much as those who buy and operate the plane, pay the pilots, buy fuel and pay the flight attendants? Why does the TSA get a dime of tax money then?
Everyone knows that you're not supposed to ask these kinds of questions. You'll be branded a potential trouble maker and need a little extra scrutiny at the airport in the form of being tripped up and waylaid just long enough to miss your flight. And you may also get a reminder about how it's for your own safety in the form of a baton being ramrodded into your bowels in the little window-less, camera-less office. Just pony up the dough, no questions asked.
This is the world we live in: $600 base fare + $600 in assorted taxes, fees, and surcharges. And accept any security procedure, no matter how onerous, cumbersome, pointless, or preposterous. "It's for your own safety".
But "SCORE!" You got a $600 ticket for halfway around the world.
Is it much different than other things? Your phone bill has a lot of extra fees and charges. Every product and service you buy includes taxes that the business owner has to pay. You just don't see it (or all of it) because they don't itemize it. The sales tax you do see is just a small part of the overall taxes you pay. At least the airlines are being transparent.
Quote:
Originally Posted by HappyRider
Why does the TSA get a dime of tax money then?
The taxes you pay for your airfare is passed on to the government who passes it on to the TSA. It's not like the airlines directly pay the TSA.
Last edited by Retroit; 06-24-2015 at 12:37 PM..
Reason: Added question mark.
Yep, lots of additional costs built into tickets. Fees for federal/national aviation infrastructure funds (ie air traffic control, gov't operated navigation systems, etc), airport security (which is federal at most places, local at a handful), plus there are landing fees thrown in that go to the upkeep of the airports themselves, in addition to taxes, etc. Then you get to pay extra fees to the airport on the items purchased in the airports as well, ie the $12 cheeseburger or $8 coffee.
Roughly 1/3 the cost of an average domestic ticket goes toward taxes and (mandatory government) fees. Essentially the governments treat air travel as a piggy bank.
Internationally it is even worse.
The airlines pay the vast majority of these fees, where as private aviation pays very little. There is some movement toward "user fees" to help reduce the burden off of just the airlines.
The airlines pay the vast majority of these fees, where as private aviation pays very little. There is some movement toward "user fees" to help reduce the burden off of just the airlines.
GA pays tax on its fuel, which as I recall the airlines are exempt from (as they have to pay so many other fees and taxes). You start imposing a fee for every weather briefing or flight plan and cheap pilots will stop getting/filing them.
GA pays tax on its fuel, which as I recall the airlines are exempt from (as they have to pay so many other fees and taxes). You start imposing a fee for every weather briefing or flight plan and cheap pilots will stop getting/filing them.
Saying GA pays their way is like saying the poor pay their way. They are subsidized by the airlines who pay the lions share in fees into the system. The Cherokee burning $8/hr in taxes doesn't contribute squat to the general fund. Sorry.
Airlines are exempt from certain local taxes on jetA up to a certain cap. But only certain airlines in certain cities, and only local taxes. Remember they also pay a crap ton in fees to the airports, ranging from $5-$15 per passenger boarded depending on the city.
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