PSC covers departures - who pays for arrivals?

[jabird]

Something I have been wondering about, especially in lead up to tomorrow's strikes, when public sector employees who essentially provide a private and chargeable service will walk out.

As I understand it, PSC is labelled as part of the cost of the outbound flight, but do airports then apply it to cover the costs of the inbound leg?

Now that so much flying is done on locos, and often out and back through different airports, will airports ever try to levy an arrivals charge, for MOL to double and pass on to his pax?

Consider:

Departing passengers:

- Have much longer dwell time in airport malls - spend £££ in shops or eating.
- Are more likely to use an airport hotel for overnight stay before early morning departure.
- If using different airports, pax more likely to park at departure airport (time constrained).
-Need security check, but no UK outbound border check.
-A/c needs refueling, profit centre for airport.

Arriving passengers:

-May generate car hire revenue on outbound leg (any ideas what % actually do this?)
-Get out of the airport as soon as free and able to do so (except for few spotter types)
-May buy small snack, paper etc on way out.
-As own car is left behind, more likely to use public transport than get hire car, may take taxi (sometimes small yield).
-Landing a/c create more force on runway?
-Need to pass through customs & immigration on international (ex Schengen) flights.

In many cases, flights may operate from a high cost airport (LCY) to a lower cost airport, and vice versa, but the PSC is based on the departure, not the arrival.

Or does this all just balance out in the end?

[davidjohnson6]

An airport can through its security function can quite easily tell passengers who have not paid the PSC to leave the airport instead of being allowed to board. Much harder to tell passengers on an arriving aircraft that they may not leave the aircraft or terminal until they pay a fee - far too easy for a good lawyer to raise a charge of false imprisonment.

The nearest I've ever seen this is at the Angel Falls national park in Venezuela. The airstrip is surrounded by the national park and the park guards will not let you enter the park until you buy a park ticket - which is sold separately to the flight. The result is that you may disembark from aircraft to terminal but may not leave the terminal until you pay an extra fee, turning this effectively into an arrival fee.

Anyone else seen anything similiar ?

[jabird]

DJ,

Interesting answer. In 94, I went to Turkey as part of a group from Edinburgh, and we were told in no uncertain terms to make sure we had £5 in cash - Bank of England note - or we wouldn't get in.

There are certainly plenty of people held at airports due to being denied entry.

However, I didn't mean the kind of levy imposed at NOC, NQY etc, I meant the PSC that is usually added to the cost of a ticket when booking online, although it is often labelled as tax when it clearly isn't.

[TwinAisle]

In my far east days, we operated a few routes into airports that charged PSC on arrivals. Made for very asymmetric fares - double charge one way, none on the return....