Avtur Prices Soar, Airlangga: Government Keeps Flight Ticket Prices Affordable

Jakarta - The war between Iran and Israel and the United States has also increased the price of jet fuel. This will have the consequence of increasing the price of airplane tickets.

However, the government ensures that air ticket prices will remain affordable even though the price of jet fuel has jumped due to the war in the Middle East which is expanding. This was conveyed by Coordinating Minister for Economic Affairs Airlangga Hartarto at a press conference regarding Transportation and Fuel Policies at the Coordinating Ministry for Economic Affairs Office, Jakarta, Monday, April 6.

Airlangga said avtur is a non-subsidized fuel so its price follows the market. If Indonesia does not adjust, it will be used by other airlines because it has increased in various countries.

However, to maintain people's purchasing power as directed by President Prabowo Subianto, the government anticipates an increase in airfare prices with various policy measures.

Because, the price of avtur does contribute greatly, namely 40 percent of the cost of operating an aircraft. First, the government poured incentives of IDR 1.3 trillion per month to subsidize Value Added Tax (PPN) through the Government-Covered (DTP) scheme.

This stimulus is planned for two months with a total budget of Rp. 2.6 trillion. Second, the government also set the fuel surcharge for all types of aircraft to 38 percent. Thus, airlines can increase their Upper Limit Tariff (TBA).

With these two steps, the government asks airlines to raise the price of domestic flight tickets for the economy class by a maximum of 13 percent.

The government also provides another incentive, namely the exemption of import duties on the purchase of aircraft parts. This is because these components also contribute to the calculation of air ticket prices.