DPR Complains About High Domestic Flight Ticket Prices During Lebaran Holiday Rush
Parliamentary Commission V has complained about the high prices of domestic flight tickets during the Lebaran holiday rush. Lasarus, the chairman of Commission V, believes there is an anomaly in ticket pricing, noting that international route tickets are actually relatively cheaper.
He cited an example of Garuda Indonesia ticket prices for the Jakarta-Jayapura route, which reached Rp 15.7 million during the holiday rush, whilst tickets for the Jakarta-Kuala Lumpur route were priced around Rp 8 million.
“There is a tendency for domestic flights to be more expensive than flying abroad. It’s rather strange,” Lasarus said during a parliamentary hearing on infrastructure and transportation service readiness ahead of the 2026 Lebaran holiday rush on Wednesday, 11 March 2026.
He reminded colleagues that this issue of expensive domestic flight tickets has been repeatedly raised to the government. According to information obtained regarding this complaint, air transport in Indonesia is still classified as a luxury good.
However, he noted that aviation has become accessible to almost everyone and should no longer be considered a luxury item. Beyond the luxury classification, Lasarus continued, soaring ticket prices are also driven by the cost of spare parts, fuel, and import duties on aircraft components.
“Aviation fuel has been expensive for a long time and is also subject to tax,” Lasarus stated.
Therefore, he requested that the Ministry of Transportation work together with other agencies to find solutions to the problem of expensive domestic flight tickets in Indonesia.
“This needs to be resolved. It’s unfortunate for the public if this situation continues,” said the PDIP politician.
In response, Transport Minister Dudy Purwagandhi stated that the government regularly monitors flight ticket pricing during the Lebaran, Christmas, and New Year periods. He explained that these are peak seasons, so airlines typically apply prices according to the maximum tariff ceiling (TBA) that has been determined by regulation.
However, the Transport Ministry does not hesitate to impose sanctions if violations are found. “Have violations ever occurred? Possibly once or twice,” Dudy said.
Dani Haikal, director of operations at PT Garuda Indonesia, stated that the airline follows government regulations in determining tariff levels, including using the maximum tariff ceiling.
“So the tickets sold by Garuda never exceed what has been set by the regulator,” Dani said.