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High airfares holding back tourism recovery: Sandiaga Uno
The government has pointed to high airfares as one reason for the sluggish recovery of the tourist industry, as ticket prices remain elevated more than half a year after the Supreme Court upheld an antitrust ruling against seven domestic carriers.
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A Garuda Indonesia airplane is parked at Soekarno Hatta International Airport in Tangerang, Banten, on May 14, 2022. (AFP/Chaideer Mahyuddin)
T
he government has pointed to high airfares as one reason for the sluggish recovery of the tourist industry from the pandemic-induced downturn.
The argument is that would-be passengers may think twice about boarding aircraft because tickets remain relatively expensive more than half a year after the Supreme Court upheld an antitrust ruling against seven domestic carriers.
Tourism and Creative Economy Minister Sandiaga Uno said the legal process had to be followed and respected, noting that high airfares were one of the problems hindering the tourism recovery, especially in the domestic context.
“We must avoid cartel practices or collusion. We must support the KPPU in [preventing such practices]. There must never be unhealthy practices in setting airfares,” Sandiaga said at his ministry’s weekly press briefing on Monday, referring to the Business Competition Supervisory Commission (KPPU).
“We want flights to be affordable and competitive,” he added.
A legal fight of several years between the KPPU and airlines ended last December when the Supreme Court decided in favor of the antitrust agency, but experts say the ruling has had little-to-no impact.
The case was built on suspicion of ticket price fixing in 2019 involving Garuda Indonesia, Citilink, Sriwijaya Air, NAM Air, Batik Air, Lion Air and Wings Air.
