DOTr Probes P30K Flight Fare To Siargao

A roundtrip air ticket to Siargao costs P30,000? The Department of Transportation (DOTr) wants to know, as it summoned airlines to a meeting next week.

Transportation Secretary Vince Dizon is leading talks on Aug. 26 with domestic carriers to ask why fares are reaching P30,000 for a roundtrip ticket to top tourist destinations like Siargao.

“I want to know why their fares are so expensive. At times, it is cheaper to go to Japan than to Siargao. To Siargao, it costs P25,000 to P30,000,” Dizon told The Philippine STAR on Monday, Aug. 18.

Dizon said the meeting with airlines would aim to lower the cost of flying, especially as Filipinos are likely traveling somewhere during the holiday season. He wants to know from carriers what the DOTr can do to make fares more affordable.

The Association of Air Carriers of the Philippines is scheduled to represent the airlines. From the government, the heads of the Civil Aeronautics Board (CAB) and the Civil Aviation Authority of the Philippines are joining Dizon at the meeting.

“I want to find out what the government can do. I know that this is a deregulated industry, but this is just too much,” Dizon said.

He added that it is difficult to understand why fares are reaching the current rates when the fuel surcharge has been steady.

The CAB has set the fuel surcharge for this month at Level 4, limiting the rate to P117 to P342 for domestic flights and P385.70 to P2,867.82 for foreign trips.

Prior to this, CAB brought down the fuel surcharge to a record-low Level 3 in July, which meant airlines imposed just P83 to P300 for local flights and P273.36 to P2,032.54 for foreign trips.

Despite the lowered fuel surcharge, Dizon lamented that fares were still higher than usual.

This is not the first time that Dizon is raising his eyebrows over aviation pricing.

In June, the DOTr imposed a P6-million fine on AirAsia’s booking unit AirAsia Move for selling Tacloban flights for around P39,000 per way.

AirAsia Move has since corrected its pricing system, complying with the DOTr’s directive.

Although AirAsia Move was sanctioned, the penalty can be viewed as a lighter punishment when the DOTr was initially considering suing it for economic sabotage.

PSC hike at NAIA

The DOTr will be convening airlines a few days prior to the implementation of the first tranche of passenger service charge hike at the Ninoy Aquino International Airport. Under a privately run NAIA, the PSC will increase every five years starting this September.

As approved, the PSC will rise to P950 for international departures and P390 for domestic flights by September, from P550 and P200, respectively.

The New NAIA Infrastructure Corp. is authorized by an administrative order to augment fees to fund the P170.6-billion rehabilitation of the airport.

The country’s biggest carriers Cebu Pacific and Philippine Airlines (PAL) raised their spending in the first half, primarily to scale up capacity to cater to the demand.

Cebu Pacific increased spending by 21 percent to P55.42 billion, the bulk of which went to flying and maintenance costs.

PAL, for its part, posted a five-percent spike in expenses to P84.65 billion, as servicing and traffic costs ballooned.