Glasgow and Aberdeen Airport drop-off fees are just a rip-off, writes columnist Marissa MacWhirter.

This week, aviation firm AGS announced it was increasing drop-off fees at its two Scottish airports, bringing the cost to kiss and fly at both Glasgow and Aberdeen up to a whopping £7 for 15 minutes. Do these new fees sound unreasonable? Well, that is because they are.

Like many people, I don’t have access to a car, which means that to get to Glasgow Airport, the only viable option is to take a taxi. The Glasgow Airport Express 500 bus costs £11 for a single ticket, which is about 64% of the cost of the drop-off fee. The bus has a very restricted route, so for a lot of people (me included), you would have to find your way into the city centre before you could get the bus anyway.

For a route that brags about being 15 minutes to the city centre, £11 is a lot of money. I asked First Group repeatedly if the airport was charging them for use of the forecourt, and if that was factored into the fare for the airport bus. Because that would negate any environmental cause for drop-off fees. Unfortunately, First was unable to answer this simple query. “Just checking, what is the nature of your article? How will our info be used, please?” a spokesperson replied. “As much info as you can get us would help move things along!” (If they do provide a response, this copy will be updated tout de suite).

A taxi journey to Glasgow Airport is around £30 from the city centre, thanks to the drop-off fee, which is (understandably) added on. It often feels like I have paid less for my budget flight out of the country than for my journey........

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