Aer Lingus may phase out premier class travel on all European routes before the end of the year, the airline's chief executive indicated yesterday.

Mr Willie Walsh said business class travel, certainly on short-haul routes, was declining rapidly. He said that, in 2004, he expected only 4 per cent of bookings to be premier class. He said premier class seats had already been withdrawn from all routes except services to Heathrow and some of the larger European cities.

In relation to these, he said "they will be re-evaluated at the end of the summer". He said some airlines were not moving as fast as Aer Lingus in reducing business class but he believed that it was the right approach.

He said, in the new era of aviation, business people were prepared to fly with low-cost carriers, particularly on short-haul routes.

Mr Walsh said the changes to business class were all part of cutting costs.

"More cost reductions will be the order of the day," he told the Future of European Air Transportation conference in Dublin.

Mr Walsh angrily denounced earlier contributions which suggested airport charges were not a major cost for airlines.

"Rubbish," he said and added that airport charges were the second-highest cost for Aer Lingus. "We spend more money on airport charges than we do on fuel, so airport charges do have an influence on route decisions."

He gave the example of Spain, which had the lowest charges in Europe, adding that this was why Aer Lingus was able to expand there.

He said airports had not embraced cost cutting in the same way as airlines.

Towards the close of the conference, the assistant secretary of the Department of Transport, Mr John Lumsden, said this was a constant refrain from airlines. He said there was a need for legislators and policymakers to look at the issue.

Mr Walsh's views were not echoed by the chief executive of Aer Rianta, Ms Margaret Sweeney. She claimed Dublin Airport's charges were the lowest of any major airport in Europe.

The world's two largest plane manufacturers, Boeing and Airbus, also sent representatives to the conference.

Mr Colin Stewart, vice-president (marketing) of Airbus, said he was optimistic about the future of the airline business. He said Airbus believed its giant A380 aircraft, which would enter service in about two years, would revolutionise the industry.

This new emphasis on larger aircraft was not shared by the Boeing representative, Mr John Impert, who said his company would focus on the middle market of planes with about 200 seats.

He said Airbus believed thousands of A380s would eventually be sold, whereas Boeing believed only a few hundred would be needed.