AS Capital A Bhd (formerly AirAsia Group Bhd) calls for further relaxation of travel restrictions to stimulate air travel and support global economic recovery, Sarawakians and Sabahans are left fuming as to how the East Malaysia balik kampung exodus during the forthcoming Hari Raya has triggered skyrocketing of airfares to a ridiculous level.
Sarawak Chief Minister Datuk Patinggi Abang Johari Tun Openg, his Sabah counterpart Datuk Seri Hajiji Noor and Deputy Chief Minister of Sabah, Datuk Seri Bung Mokhtar Radin, have recently voiced out the plight of East Malaysians who have to cancel their trips home in view of exorbitant airfare hike.
Hajiji has described the airfare surge as “burdening the people” while Bung Moktar described the current prices as “daylight robbery”.
Towards this end, Prime Minister Datuk Seri Ismail Sabri Yaakob had on yesterday (April 17) instructed Domestic Trade and Consumer Affairs Minister Datuk Seri Alexander Nanta Linggi to swiftly look into the matter.
“I heard flight ticket prices have surged by 500%. I told the Domestic Trade and Consumer Affairs Minister to look into the claims and if there has been a 500% spike as claimed, then it is an offence under the Price Control and Anti-Profiteering Act 2011,” he told a Semarak Ramadan Keluarga Malaysia cheap sales event at his Bera constituency.
Ismail Sabri said he had also spoken to the Transport Minister Datuk Seri Dr Wee Ka Siong to meet airline operators to study the possibility of reducing ticket prices.
“If there is an increase in a flight ticket price to Kedah, the people have an alternative to travel by car but what about those living in Sabah and Sarawak? How will they go home? I was told the ticket price is about RM2,000 which is equal to the airfare to London,” he justified.
In a media statement dated April 15, Wee said based on a monitoring by the Malaysian Aviation Commission (MAVCOM), airfare prices on April 30 – the peak travel date for the Hari Raya festivity – have risen compared to the average fare price in 2019.
“This increase is due to rising operating costs especially the rise in jet fuel prices as well as limited resources for airlines to increase full capacity,” he explained.
“Moreover, the dynamic price setting mechanism or ‘dynamic pricing mechanism’ leverages artificial intelligence (AI) to determine the airfare price of mines as opposed to claims that the hike is manually done.”
According to Wee, he has chaired special meeting involving the Transport Ministry, MAVCOM, the Civil Aviation Authority of Malaysia (CAAM) and domestic airlines (Malaysia Airlines, AirAsia and Malindo) to find the best solutions to deal with the airfare hike issue.
“In the meeting, I have instructed MAVCOM and the airlines to carry out a detailed and thorough investigation into the issue of price hike during festive season,” he noted.
To re-cap, the establishment of domestic aviation fare structure by national airlines is based on the rationalisation of the domestic air service sector in 2006 whereby the Minister had at that time decided that national airlines are given freedom in determining their network coverage, flight frequency and fare rate based on market demand.
This is in line with international practices that do not control flight fare prices for international or domestic routes. Although ceiling prices can lower flight fares during the peak season, they will cause an increase in airfares during off-peak season. – April 18, 2022
