Aegean asks for airport tax cap

Greece needs to adopt a single policy for its airports that will place a ceiling on airport charges, Aegean Airlines officials noted on Thursday, warning that otherwise the carrier is set to shrink dramatically in the coming year.

Aegean officials added that airports should be grouped for privatization, adding that this should happen in a ?safe? manner so as to avoid monopolistic practices in the market. A possible grouping of neighboring airports for sale to the same investor could lead to market distortion, the officials explained. They further called for the creation of a regulatory authority for airports.

The airline?s officials also estimated that tourism traffic will be 3 to 5 percent lower than last year as the growth posted in 2011 was due to the unrest in North Africa. Worse, the negative financial situation in Greece has reduced Aegean?s domestic traffic by an estimated 32-35 percent in the first three months of the year.