New cost structure could lower budget airlines’ ticket prices
Passengers of low-cost airlines might find their tickets getting even cheaper after a cost-structuring formula is revamped.
Currently the Civil Aviation Authority of Thailand (CAAT) caps ticket prices at Bt13 per kilometre. This same cap is applied to full-service as well as budget carriers, despite the differences in their basic services.
Transport Minister Arkhom Termpittayapaisith said after a meeting of the Civil Aviation Board on Thursday that he had instructed the CAAT to bring fares into line with real operational costs.
“The CAAT should separate the structure of the low-cost airlines’ tickets from that of the full-serviced airlines,” he said.
CAAT director Chula Sukmanop said that separating the low-cost airlines’ cost structure from that of full-service carriers would bring down budget airlines’ fares.
“The new ceiling for the low-cost airfares should be revealed by the middle of this year,” he said.
