Transportation Minister asks airlines to offer affordable flight fares

Jakarta (ANTARA) - Minister of Transportation Budi Karya Sumadi has called on airlines to offer domestic flights at more affordable prices to the public.


"We urge airline companies to offer more reasonable tariffs (for domestic flights) to the public," Sumadi told reporters in Jakarta on Thursday.

The Ministry of Transportation has lowered the tariffs for flight ticket prices to between 12 percent and 16 percent, and a 12 percent drop to be made on busiest routes, including those in the Java region, whereas other tariff reductions were made for flights on routes, including to Jayapura.

The decision was made following a coordination meeting by the Economic Coordination Ministry that agreed to change the upper limit tariff (TBA) that assigned the Ministry of Transportation to amend KM 72 of 2019 on the Upper Limit Tariff of Economy Class Domestic Passenger Air Transportation Services.

Amendment to the decree was stipulated in Transportation Minister's Decree No. 106 of 2019 concerning the Upper Limit Tariff of Economy Class Domestic Passenger Commercial Air Transportation Service Passengers.

This new decision will be reviewed in a three-monthly period and at any time in the event of major changes that affect the sustainability of the activities of the air transport business entity.

Director General of Civil Aviation of the Ministry of Transportation Polana Banguningsih Pramesti remarked that the reduction by 12-16 percent in TBA continued to prioritize major factors, including security and flight accuracy (On-Time Performance).

He explained that the cost component contributing to the reduction in TBA arose from the operational effectiveness of aircraft at the airport to ensure fuel efficiency and also optimize efficiency of aircraft operating hours.

Reporter: Eliswan Azly
Editor: Suharto