BIA to levy UDF in Nov

BIA to levy UDF in Nov
By S Praveen Dhaneshkar, DH News Service, Bangalore:
Passengers embarking on domestic flights at the Bengaluru International Airport (BIA) will have to pay UDF (user development fee) of Rs 675 from mid-November.

With the Ministry of Civil Aviation (MoCA) currently evaluating the audited project cost report, the UDF for domestic airline passengers will be allowed by the ministry as early as November 15, according to MoCA sources.

“We will issue the notification and direct/allow the BIA to charge the UDF as the evaluation of the audited cost report is almost complete and will be approved,” sources said.

While the BIA has been allowed to levy a fee of Rs 1,070 for international passengers, the MocA had deferred its decision to allow the BIA to charge fee for inland flights.

However, the Civil Aviation Ministry has directed the Hyderabad airport to levy Rs 375 as UDF from domestic passengers. This is more than 38 per cent lower than what its promoters, the GMR Hyderabad International Airport Ltd (GHIAL), had demanded.

The GHIAL had asked for an UDF of at least Rs 600 from domestic passengers travelling out of the state. For passengers travelling within the state, it had proposed an UDF of Rs 350. The Hyderabad airport charges Rs 1,000 as UDF from its international flight passengers.

What is UDF?
UDF is the fee levied at the airport on departing passengers to enable the airport developer bridge the gap between expenditure and admissible revenue as stipulated by the ministry guidelines.

MoCA guidelines propose an uniform UDF to be charged by greenfield airports across the country, though the investment by the private promoter in each airport may vary.