The Union government will allow airlines to unbundle charges for services such as preferential seating, meals, snacks, drinks (except drinking water), the use of lounges, baggage, the carriage of sports equipment and musical instruments, and the treatment of valuable items.
The Union Civil Aviation Ministry had, in 2011, barred airlines from charging extras such as preferential seating, prompting low-fare carrier IndiGo and others to include this in a ‘special services’ category. The MinistryÂ’s latest move comes a month after the government cleared AirAsia BhdÂ’s proposal to invest Rs 80.98 crore in a domestic passenger airline that it plans to launch jointly with Tata Sons.
MalaysiaÂ’s AirAsia, and many other global low-cost airlines, derive a significant portion of their revenue from charging for these services. AirAsia will hold a 49 per cent stake in the Indian venture, which is expected to launch services this year once it gets all the necessary approvals, while Tata Sons will own 30 per cent and Arun Bhatia of Telestra Tradeplace the rest.
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