Australia’s federal consumer watchdog will “closely” monitor domestic airlines in the next few weeks, amid concerns about overpriced airfares over the summer holiday period.
Price concerns
The Australian Competition & Consumer Commission (ACCC) is concerned that airlines could intentionally withhold some of their planes from being used over the Christmas period.
This would keep prices higher than what they would be if there was more availability (i.e. plane seats) in the market.
Due to COVID-19, most airlines are still operating below their capacity.
Will capacity grow?
Most Australian carriers have forecast a scale-up over the coming months.
Qantas and Jetstar’s domestic capacity is reported to be at 95% of pre-COVID levels. It’s expected to reach 100% in the second half of 2023.
