SEPANG: The government has extended the subsidy to cap airfares at RM499 during festive seasons from three days to four days, starting from Christmas this year.
Transport Minister Anthony Loke Siew Fook stated that the initiative covers flights between Peninsular Malaysia and Sabah or Sarawak.
"We anticipate more people travelling over the weekend, so the subsidy will now cover four days (before the festive dates).
"This involves setting a maximum fare for airlines.
"The subsidy will enhance convenience and provide passengers with more competitive and affordable fares.
"We hope it will benefit more Malaysians," he said after the launch of AirAsia's fixed fare initiative for the Chinese New Year celebration at AirAsia RedQ here today.
Loke noted that extending the subsidy will incur an estimated additional government expenditure of RM20 million.
He said the Finance Ministry has allocated RM48 million to the Transport Ministry to support this initiative as well as the FlySiswa programme.
"On average, the subsidy for each passenger seat amounts to RM406.
"This year, we have spent nearly RM12.5 million," he said.
"The Malaysian government is introducing this intervention to cap flight ticket prices during festive seasons, recognising that prices often spike due to the dynamic pricing mechanism," he added.
– Bernama