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International Air Transport Association (IATA) chief Willie Walsh has said India is a fantastic potential market for aviation but not a cheap market to operate as taxation is higher in the country than in many other places. Walsh also highlighted the scale of the economy and investments going into airports in India.

Talking about a possible duopoly in the Indian airline market, Walsh said there is plenty of scope for others (airlines) to compete in the market. Meanwhile, he also said that he has no sympathy for airports and that they are profitable all the time. He said ‘Airports try to convince people that every new passenger I get means I have to increase my charges. That is complete nonsense. The more passengers you get, the lower your cost should be. What we have seen with airports is very high returns on capital way in excess of the cost of their capital.’

Further, He said that India needs to recognise that the real advantage will come in by making fares cheaper for more and more people to fly. The International Air Transport Association (IATA) is a grouping of more than 300 airlines, including Air India, IndiGo and SpiceJet.