AER Lingus launches legal challenge against air travel tax

Aer Lingus is suing the Irish government for more than €61 million over the air travel tax, which it claims is contrary to EU law. The tax was introduced by the 2008 Finance Act, which introduced a €2 air travel tax payable per passenger departing on flights from an airport within 300km of Dublin Airport and a €10 per passenger tax on passengers departing on any other flights. The airline paid the tax from March 2009. However two years late the tax was deemed in breach of EU regulations and repealed in March 2011 and was replaced by a single