KUALA LUMPUR - INDIAN private airline Jet Airways on Tuesday said the move by authorities in Delhi and Mumbai to hike airport costs by up to 278 per cent was a 'disaster' for the troubled industry.

'Airport charges are crazy. This is a disaster. This is absolutely not fair to the industry,' Jet Airways chairman Naresh Goyal told reporters on the sidelines of the International Air Transport Association (IATA) annual meeting.

He said rates should be brought down, adding that the carrier would slash capacity on its flights to the US by 30 per cent to cut costs.

A recent industry report said India's airlines were caught in a 'perfect storm' of big losses, high debt and falling demand, and need urgent government help to make them high-flyers again.

Early this year the main airports in each city increased charges by 10 per cent, while Mumbai introduced a development fee of 278 per cent and Delhi brought in a similar charge of 137 per cent.

IATA director-general Giovanni Bisignani on Monday slammed the hikes, saying: 'There is no room for this nonsense in our future. When demand drops, suppliers cannot divide the same costs among fewer customers,' he said. -- AFP