If you’re one who frequently travels with AirAsia, buckle up as your plane tickets are going to cost a bit more next year.
This comes after the low-cost airline announced that it will be charging mandatory carbon fees on all of its flights starting Jan 2025.
Carbon fees for AirAsia flights to come into effect next Jan
According to The Edge, AirAsia Bhd’s CEO Tony Fernandes said the company is currently in the midst of seeking approval from authorities in countries they operate in, such as Thailand, Indonesia, the Philippines, and Cambodia.
We will do it in January next year because I don’t want to just do it in Malaysia. We have an option [for passengers to voluntarily pay the carbon fees], but we are not going to make it optional.”
The carbon fees, which will be added to ticket prices, is aimed at supporting the government’s efforts to reduce greenhouse gas emissions from the aviation sector.
Unlike Malaysia Airlines, which currently gives customers the choice of paying carbon fees voluntarily, Fernandes said AirAsia will be doing to opposite, adding, “If you put it optional, no one is going to do it.”
Commenting further, Fernandes added that it was vital that the public be educated about carbon fees and why it’s needed.
“The biggest thing we can do is educate the public. All of us need to do something. So we want to educate the public [about the carbon fees] and we want to make sure that whatever money we raise are for investments that go into projects that will reduce carbon in Asean,” he said.
Carbon fees up to airlines’ discretion
Previously, the Malaysian Aviation Commission (MAVCOM) said that airlines operating inside and outside of Malaysia have the final say in determining whether to impose carbon fees or not.
“Mavcom does not provide any regulations on how to do it, because this is a requirement by the country. So, it is up to the airlines on how much and when they will impose the carbon levy,” its director of consumer and public affairs said.
This was also confirmed by Transport Minister Anthony Loke, who said that carbon fees aren’t collected by the government but by airlines to offset carbon emissions.
“Our policy is different from Singapore’s. We make it optional. It depends on airlines — either local or international airlines flying in and out of Kuala Lumpur — whether to impose that [the carbon levy].”
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