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PORT OF SPAIN, Trinidad and Tobago, January 2, 2020 (CMC) – Regional carrier, Caribbean Airlines (CAL), has expressed concern about a recent report, published by the Competition and Consumer Affairs Commission in Guyana, which stated that passengers from Guyana were being slapped with higher prices to sustain less-performing routes.
Over the years, Guyanese passengers have been complaining about the high prices for various CAL destinations from Guyana, including Trinidad and Tobago.
The complaints triggered the study that was recently completed by the Competition and Consumer Affairs Commission.
The study found that while Caribbean Airlines enjoyed a monopoly-type situation on the Georgetown to New York route, it’s pricing remained high, even while being in control of 59 percent of the market overall.
In response, Caribbean Airlines denied overpricing Guyanese travelers to sustain any other market.
The airline said it has been loyal to Guyana for many decades and has remained in the country, while other airlines packed up and left.
According to CAL, to pick out a few individual fares and suggest that it indicates that the airline is using these fares to subsidize routes elsewhere, demonstrates a limited understanding of how airlines operate in the real world.
The company said it has been expanding its service to Guyana and will continue to do so in this year.
“These are substantial investments in the Guyanese market, where Caribbean Airlines already has a number of competitors, and where there is always the threat of new entrants,” it added.
CAL said it closely manages ticket prices in the Guyana market, to be competitive and appealing to its customers.
The company said its prices are frequently cheaper than its competitors, when comparing like-for-like.
The airline believes its service to the Guyana market is a “major success story that brings enormous benefits to the Guyanese economy, Guyanese employment and connectivity for Guyana, across the Caribbean and beyond”.
