KUALA LUMPUR, July 21 — Airline ticket prices would not drop drastically even after capacity limits have been lifted, Transport Minister Datuk Seri Wee Ka Siong said today.

"According to the airlines, even if the government decided to exempt social distancing instructions on the plane, flight tickets will not necessarily go down immediately.

"Airlines need to ensure that there is a continuous and stable demand before fares can return to normal levels as before the Covid-19 outbreak.

"In addition, airlines also practice the concept of cross-subsidisation in fares,” he said, adding that any profitable flight routes will cover the operation cost of unprofitable routes.

He said this was how airlines could offer low ticket prices.

"The implementation of this concept depends on the extensive network of flights offered by airlines on demand,” he said during Question Time in the Dewan Rakyat.

Wee was replying Sibuti MP Lukanisman Awang Sauni who wanted to know what the Transport Ministry is doing to address the high prices of flight tickets between the peninsula and Borneo Malaysia and whether a timeline has been set for a return to affordability.