Manila, June 3 - The Philippine government has taken decisive action against AirAsia MOVE, a Malaysia-based online travel booking platform, ordering its website to be shut down and initiating legal proceedings for what authorities have described as “criminal economic sabotage” due to excessively high airfare prices. The Department of Transportation (DOTr), led by Secretary Vince Dizon, issued a cease-and-desist order on May 26, 2025, following complaints that the platform was charging fares far exceeding the approved limits set by the Civil Aeronautics Board (CAB). The controversy came to light after Leyte 4th District Representative Richard Gomez and his wife, Ormoc Mayor Lucy Torres-Gomez, reported paying approximately PHP 77,704 for two Philippine Airlines (PAL) tickets from Tacloban to Manila booked through AirAsia MOVE. In contrast, the same tickets were available on PAL’s official website for as low as PHP 12,600, highlighting a markup of nearly three times the standard fare.
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The DOTr’s investigation revealed that AirAsia MOVE, operated by Move Travel Sdn. Bhd., a registered travel agency in Malaysia, was allegedly exploiting a transportation crisis in Eastern Visayas, triggered by the partial closure of the San Juanico Bridge to heavy vehicles. This closure disrupted the movement of goods and people, creating a surge in demand for air travel to and from Tacloban City. Data from the transportation ministry showed that AirAsia MOVE charged up to PHP 77,000 (approximately USD 1,380) for a one-way ticket from Manila to Tacloban, a price deemed “absurd” and predatory by Dizon. The CAB, responsible for regulating airfare ceilings in the Philippines, found that these prices violated established fare structures, prompting swift regulatory action.
On June 2, 2025, Dizon announced at a press conference in San Juan City that the Philippine National Police’s Anti-Cybercrime Group had been tasked with taking down AirAsia MOVE’s website to prevent further exploitation of consumers. The DOTr also instructed the CAB to file criminal charges against the platform, emphasizing that such pricing practices constituted economic sabotage, particularly during a regional crisis. Dizon clarified that AirAsia Philippines, a low-cost carrier affiliated with the AirAsia Group, was not implicated in the issue, as the problem was specific to the online booking platform operated by the Malaysian entity.
AirAsia MOVE responded by stating it would comply with the cease-and-desist order but argued that, as a foreign-based travel agency, it was not under the CAB’s jurisdiction. The company claimed it does not manually set or manipulate airfares and attributed the pricing discrepancies to a third-party provider. However, CAB Executive Director Carmelo Arcilla countered that any entity selling tickets for Philippine carriers at prices exceeding regulated fares falls within the board’s enforcement authority, regardless of its base of operations. The DOTr has also ordered a broader investigation into other online booking platforms to ensure compliance with fare regulations across all destinations, signaling a robust crackdown on predatory pricing practices in the aviation sector.