On air ticket prices in emergencies, is the sky the limit?

Written by Miami Today on December 11, 2017

With a week’s warning as a projected Category 5 Hurricane Irma bore down on Miami in September and lowland evacuations ordered, some airlines sent the price of tickets soaring – $3,000 to Phoenix, $6,000 to Denver, $1,700 to Charlotte – says legislation before a county committee calling for a Federal Aviation Administration investigation into price-gouging in an emergency.

The resolution by Jose “Pepe” Diaz also calls on the mayor to work with airlines at Miami International Airport to ask them to price seats appropriately and provide appropriate serve levels in emergencies.

On the other hand, the measure also notes approvingly that while some airlines reportedly jacked prices skyward, “American Airlines and Delta Airlines added additional flights… to provide additional capacity for persons seeking to evacuate Hurricane Irma.”