Ryanair fights Swedish claim for €1.5m in charges

Ryanair asked the High Court yesterday to dismiss a claim by the Swedish air transport regul-atory agency that the airline owes it more than €1.5m for unpaid security and authority charges.

The carrier, which operates several routes from a number of Swedish airports, argued that the claim should be struck out on grounds including that the Irish court lacked jurisdiction to hear the case and that the dispute should be determined by a court in Sweden.

The Swedish Transport Agency (Transporttyrelsen) opposed Ryanair's motion. It said the dispute should be determined by the courts here as Ryanair is based in Ireland.

The agency, which is responsible for running Swedish airports, claimed that it is owed SEK13m (Swedish Krona) or €1.5m for a security charge introduced in Sweden after the 9/11 attacks on the US.

The court heard that Ryanair had paid the charges due in respect of passengers who booked their flights after December 13, 2004, but had refused to pay in respect of passengers who booked their flights prior to that date.

In its defence and counterclaim, Ryanair alleged that the charges -- which, it argued, amount to a form of taxation -- were in breach of Sweden's laws and constitution, as well as the rules of the International Civil Aviation Organisation.

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