Bruce Whitfield talks to FlySafair’s Kirby Gordon as accusations fly that the airline is profiting after Comair’s suspension.
Low-cost airline FlySafair has been accused of price gouging after stranded passengers had to find alternative flights following the grounding of British Airways (BA) and Kulula planes over the weekend.
The South African Civil Aviation Authority (SACAA) suspended Comair’s air operator certificate indefinitely after the company failed to show that its safety systems are up to par.
RELATED: Passengers left stranded after Comair operations suspended indefinitely
Travellers scrambling to get to their destinations took to social media to complain about FlySafair prices, with unionist Zwelenzima Vavi also entering the fray.
This is how the capitalist system works! It sees every tragedy facing human beings as an opportunity to maximize profits! This includes the health pandemics, wars, oil shortages, food shortages, grounding of other airlines etc. Creating jobs is incidental to its only goal-profits pic.twitter.com/mqYxWb7raH
— Zwelinzima Vavi (@Zwelinzima1) March 14, 2022
@FlySafair @LiftAirlineSA @Fly_Airlink could have stepped in and showed South Africa how their airlines cater to people’s needs in desperate times amidst the safety and security issues with comair @kulula but instead they HIKE PRICES RIDICULOUSLY https://t.co/Y92KyrddOv
— Shakeel Garda (@ShakeelGarda) March 15, 2022
Responding to the criticism, FlySafair tweeted that rising prices were because of the system of demand-based pricing airlines use around the world.
The carrier said its fares remain low “provided you book ahead and remain flexible on your travel dates and times”.
FlySafair, uses a system called “demand based pricing”. What this means is that the first seats on a flight, sell at the very lowest price, usually at a loss to the…
