The UK Civil Aviation Authority is proposing a below inflation increase in costs from April next year.
A consultation has begun on the proposed 1.6% increase in the cost “of like-for-like activity”.
The regulator said the suggested charges are “focused on the CAA’s core mission of protecting the public and enabling aerospace”.
Announcing the consultation, the CAA said in a statement: The proposals respond to the ever-increasing consumer demand for capacity and reliability.
“The changes also reflect the rapid technological advancement, with a greater drive towards decarbonisation, digitalisation, and continued demand within UK airspace.
“The level of the charges is consistent with the approach to charges and value for money proposed by the CAA as part of the government sponsored arm’s length body review in 2023.”
Tracey Martin, chief financial and operations officer said:“Effective regulation can be a positive force for innovation and safety by giving the public confidence in new products and services, and investors’ confidence to support the industry.
“In order to effectively perform our role protecting people and enabling aerospace, it is essential that we are focused on the future and are able to keep pace with the rapid changes the industry is going through.”
“We have proposed a reasonable balance of our regulatory obligations with investment in future innovation, helping the aviation sector to grow, and reflect the interests of all our regulatory customers.”
The proposal would mean the CAA’s statutory charges are expected to represent an estimated 0.4% of UK Aerospace turnover, equal to 45p per UK passenger journey next year.
The CAA said the changes support the regulator’s strategic objectives including protecting people through:
- Protecting people by building our environmental sustainability team so they can better report on the sustainability performance of the sector and bolstering the CAA’s ability to work with the sector on standards of consumer protection and industry resilience.
- Enabling aerospace through our Future of Flight programme and artificial intelligence strategy. To support the safe and sustainable integration of new technologies with existing aerospace users.
The consultation seeks industry feedback and is open for an eight-week period, closing on January 15.
Following the consultation period, the CAA will publish a response document reflecting the feedback received from industry and the Secretary of State for Transport.
