Air France and KLM have introduced a new Sustainable Aviation Fuel (SAF) levy to their ticket prices from the start of this week (10 January).
The sister carriers, alongside subsidiary airline Transavia, will add the charge of up to €12 to their fares for all departures from France and the Netherlands, including transit passengers.
The levy for economy fares will range from €1 per flight within Europe to up to €4 for intercontinental flights. For business class tickets, the levy will range from €1.50 to €12, depending on the duration of the flight.
Air France-KLM Group said the move would make passengers’ journeys “more sustainable”, as it would “increase drastically” the demand for SAF, as the aviation industry aims to reach net-zero carbon emissions by 2050.
Fahmi Mahjoub, UK and Ireland general manager for Air France and KLM, said: “Today, SAF production worldwide covers only around 0.1% of the total fuel usage of the aviation industry.
“We need to speed up the production and that’s why we are now gradually incorporating SAF in our flights departing from France and the Netherlands.
“Since the majority of Air France and KLM passengers have a stopover or a transfer in France or the Netherlands, we are happy to offer most of our customers a more sustainable product.”
As well as adding the SAF levy to airfares, Air France-KLM will also give passengers the option to pay extra to cover a percentage of the difference in cost between regular fuel and more expensive SAF.
“We know that there is a big demand for more sustainable aviation and we are convinced that our customers will appreciate the option to add as much SAF as they would like,” added Mahjoub.