Demand an airfare regulatory body
A recent complainant said a domestic airline charged ₹37,000 for an economy class oneway trip from Goa to Mumbai. This kind of obscene price hikes are not acceptable.
A fliers’ body has asked the government to set up a separate regulator to monitor seasonal spikes in airfares. The Air Passengers Association of India (APAI), a body formed by frequent air travellers, said it has seen a spike complaints against surge pricing. The trend was mainly observed around long weekends or during emergencies such as weather-induced flight disruptions, its office bearers said.
“A recent complainant said a domestic airline charged Rs37,000 for an economy class one-way trip from Goa to Mumbai. This kind of obscene price hikes are not acceptable. The government must set up a separate body to look into such issues,” said Sudhakar Reddy, president with the APAI.
But industry experts said capping airfares is unlikely in any free market. “Such demands have surfaced earlier but the civil aviation ministry was unable to bring any relief for passengers,” said a senior executive with an aviation think tank requesting anonymity.
But Reddy argued that surge pricing is harsh on people forced to travel during rush periods. “A person forced to travel around a long weekend to see his or her ill relative is asked to pay five to six times the normal fare. Is that fair?”a fare study by travel oper ator Cox and Kings Ltd last month showed a sharp rise in air fares around long weekends According to the study, two days ahead of the Republic Day week end airfares had nearly doubled
For instance, the price of an economy class Mumbai-goa return trip, one of the shortes domestic routes in India, was Rs29,000.the same journey a week later would cost you Rs16,800, the report stated. On some routes the fare difference was more than 100%.
At least two governments had promised capping airfares bu failed. The Ashok Gajapath Raju-led ministry , however made it compulsory for airlines to submit a break-up of the steepes air tickets on a flight and the por tion of the revenue earned through them. Experts said while that move could give an indica tion of fare hikes during peak sea son it does not help distressed fli ers trapped in a long weekend.