Funding threat to UK flights

The head of the Union des Aéroports Français (UAF), Nicolas Paulissen, said airports serving the UK as their main destination were worst affected and the future was unclear for the likes of Bergerac in Dordogne or La Rochelle in Charente-Maritime.

Mr Paulissen said: “I was surprised to learn that most people passing through La Rochelle are not tourists but are visiting friends and family and there may well be a reduction in these numbers following Brexit.

“We also don’t know what effect it may have on the two main low-cost companies, Ryanair and Easyjet, who may no longer be able to circulate as freely in what will become two different airspaces belonging separately to the UK and Europe.”
France is over-supplied with airports and too few make enough money to pay their way. The Nouvelle-Aquitaine region is particularly affected as seven of its 10 airports rely on subsidies. Among those is La Rochelle where nine of its 15 destinations are in the UK; Bergerac has 11 out of 21 and Limoges eight out of 14. Likewise in other south-west airports, Béziers has four out of seven and Carcassonne five from 11.

None of these airports is self-supporting: all depend on public subsidies to survive and public finances are tight.
Industry experts say airports with fewer than 700,000 passengers nearly always rely on subsidies as profits are unlikely below this number. Bergerac even came close to not being able to pay staff wages at the end of 2015.

The Mayor of La Rochelle, Jean-François Fountaine, made his fears public, calling on the region to say whether it would “give us the €500,000 we need for our airport. It is essential to our economy both for the majority of British passengers who come as tourists or who have second homes.”

However, the region is still putting together its transport strategy and its vice-president, Renaud Lagrave, has told Connexion this would not be revealed until June.
Each airport would be treated equally over benefits for local communities: “There are many factors, with some areas more cut off than others from alternative methods of transport. We need to decide how best to spend public money.”
An added complication is the new high-speed TGV line from Paris to Bordeaux providing alternative transport. Mr Lagrave also hinted that the region may need to introduce a transport tax: “One thing is for sure, there won’t be any additional money for airports – because there just isn’t any.”

But subsidies may not be the answer as Europe wants them to be the ‘exception and not the rule’.
The UAF’s Mr Paulissen said Europe had final say: “All public money for airports has to be scrutinised and pass strict and cumbersome European guidelines before it can be handed out.
“We are campaigning for clearer and more flexible rules as they make it difficult for airports to get the money we think they deserve given their contribution to the local economy.”
He welcomed Nouvelle Aqui­taine’s look at airports’ roles: “It has long been said there are too many airports in France; we don’t think that is true but we do think the vocation of each airport must be looked at closely so that each one has a valid role to play.

“It may be that there are sometimes too many airports too close together providing a service to the UK for example.”
The threat to airports comes alongside a new demand from Europe that UK-based airlines would need to relocate or establish bases in Europe, or face restrictions on the routes they fly.
A spokesperson for Ryanair said: “While it appears that we are heading for a ‘hard’ Brexit, there is still significant uncertainty as to what this will entail. While there may be opportunities to expand, we expect to grow at a slower pace than previously planned in the UK and will continue to switch capacity into other key markets around Europe.”

EasyJet said it is “taking steps to ensure we can maintain our European network”. It will set up an EU operating company to maintain EU flying rights based on its 110 aircraft and 4,000 crew in EU countries but its HQ will remain in Luton.
It added: “EasyJet will also remain listed on the London stock exchange. We are committed to the UK and continue to see it as a growing market.”