The Airline Association (ALA), which represents 85% of air traffic in Spain, has sent a statement to the media in which it celebrates that the European Commission "has sided with it by opening an infringement procedure against Spain" for the Ministry of Consumer Affairs' sanction against some airlines for charging for hand luggage.
The Association has stressed that Brussels "has endorsed the freedom of airlines to set the prices of their services, highlighting that European legislation guarantees this, as the airline sector has been pointing out and which the Ministry of Consumer Affairs has questioned."
Similarly, ALA adds that the Court of Justice confirms that "hand luggage that does not meet reasonable criteria in terms of weight and dimensions, in accordance with applicable safety regulations, is subject to the airlines' freedom to set prices, in line with what the airline sector has been pointing out."
"We welcome the European Commission's resolution, which confirms that these practices are legal and that each airline is free to apply its pricing policy. Consumer Affairs overstepped its bounds by imposing a unilateral, unjustified sanction, turning its back on the EU and flouting European legislation," assures Javier Gándara, president of ALA.
Gándara has demanded that the Ministry of Consumer Affairs withdraw the open fines against several airlines that lack justification, especially after the decision of Brussels.