5 Airlines Being Investigated For Price-Gouging After Amtrak Crash

BY MARC TORRENCE

The U.S. Transportation Department has opened a price-gouging investigation against five major U.S. airlines to determine whether the companies inflated flight prices shortly after an Amtrak crash in Philadelphia, according to multiple reports.

American Airlines, Delta, JetBlue, Southwest and United all received letters from the Transportation Department asking for information on their prices both before and after the train crash. Flight prices on routes from Newark, John F. Kennedy, LaGuardia and Long Island MacArthur airports are among those being scrutinized.

“The idea that any business would seek to take advantage of stranded rail passengers in the wake of such a tragic event is unacceptable,” Transportation Secretary Anthony Foxx said on Friday, according to USA Today. “This department takes all allegations of airline price-gouging seriously, and we will pursue a thorough investigation of these consumer complaints.”

The airlines have all denied raising prices to take advantage of the lack of transportation available after the crash.

On May 12, an Amtrak train going from Washington, D.C. to New York City crashed near Philadelphia, killing eight and injuring most of the rest of the 251 on board the train.

After the crash, trains throughout the Northeast were halted.

A week after the crash, Sen. Christopher Murphy, D-Connecticut, wrote a letter to President Obama requesting that he open an investigation, citing fares as high as $2,300 for flights between D.C. and New York.