San Juan City: Department of Transportation (DOTr) Secretary Vince Dizon has directed the Civil Aeronautics Board (CAB) to shut down the online booking platform AirAsia Move and file criminal charges against it for selling plane tickets of local carriers at excessive prices amidst the transport crisis in Eastern Visayas.
According to Philippines News Agency, DOTr Secretary Vince Dizon revealed in a press conference that Leyte fourth district Rep. Richard Gomez and his wife, Ormoc Mayor Lucy Torres-Gomez, purchased Philippine Airlines (PAL) tickets from Tacloban to Manila via AirAsia Move for approximately PHP77,704, nearly PHP40,000 each. This price was about three times higher than booking directly on PAL’s website.
Dizon labeled the pricing as absurd and criminal, requesting the Philippine National Police – Anti-Cybercrime Group to take down the website to prevent further scams. He expressed concerns that Gomez is not the only victim and instructed the CAB and the DOTr Aviation group to file a ‘criminal economic sabotage case’ against AirAsia Move due to the ongoing transport crisis linked to the San Juanico Bridge’s closure to heavy vehicles.
Dizon emphasized the exploitation of the situation due to the partial closure of the bridge affecting the movement of goods and people. He also called for an investigation into other online booking platforms overcharging fares in various locations, not just in Tacloban.
Dizon expressed gratitude to Office of Civil Defense head Ariel Nepomuceno for alerting the DOTr about the issue. Nepomuceno had urged the DOTr, CAB, and the Civil Aviation Authority of the Philippines (CAAP) to examine the alleged fare spikes impacting routes to Tacloban, Catarman, and Ormoc City.
On May 26, the CAB issued a cease and desist order (CDO) against AirAsia Move for selling airline tickets at prices exceeding the approved fare structures set by the CAB. The order demanded AirAsia Move to stop offering tickets at inflated prices.
In response, AirAsia Move claimed to have implemented measures to comply with the CDO. However, it argued that CAB’s jurisdiction under Republic Act. No. 776 pertains to air carriers rather than foreign-based travel agencies, asserting that regulatory actions require explicit statutory authority.
AirAsia Move, operated by Malaysia’s Move Travel Sdn. Bhd., stated its full cooperation with the Philippine government to ensure transparent fare pricing and consumer protection. MOVE CEO Nadia Omer clarified that the company does not manually manipulate airfares, attributing discrepancies to temporary data synchronization issues with flight pricing partners.
Omer mentioned that the technical discrepancy also impacted other booking platforms like Agoda, Kiwi.com, and Traveloka. MOVE expressed willingness to engage with authorities to clarify the issue and requested due process for the benefit of all passengers booked via the platform.
Meanwhile, Dizon clarified that AirAsia Philippines, though affiliated with the AirAsia Group, is not involved in the issue.
