The European Commission cannot intervene to formulate cheap airfares to and from South Cyprus, nor is there a legal definition of the term ‘reasonable airfare,’ EU Transport Commissioner Violeta Bulc has indicated.
She was responding in writing to a question submitted by Disy MEP Lefteris Christoforou who had noted the recent spike in the price of airline tickets from South Cyprus to specific destinations such as Athens.
The Disy MEP said that under these conditions, residents of South Cyprus cannot find cheap and easy connections abroad, particularly to EU countries.
Christoforou said residents of South Cyprus pay the highest airfares of all EU citizens for nearly all the destinations. And he queried how the EU Commission can ensure that airfares are logically priced and avert possible price-fixing by airline companies.
In her reply, the EU Commissioner clarified that the directive allowed airline companies to set their prices. There was no automatic direct link between airfares and distance, she added.
