An online petition has been signed by passengers of the British Airways (BA) asking the airline to reduce its fares.

The petition was started by one Esther Lulu who said Ghanaians are being charged excessive fees during peak times to fly to Ghana from the United Kingdom.

“This is an unfair economic tax on the Ghanaians. Please sign the petition to highlight awareness and support us to get British Airways to lower the fares to Ghana,” Lulu said.

The passengers complain that per their estimation, a 6.5 hour economy flight, Ghanaians are being charged the same average price as flying 24-26 hours to Sydney, Australia.

“This must stop. Ghanaians should not be penalised with excessive taxes, fares and fuel costs to visit families back home,” a frequent British Airways flyer said.

According to the passengers, an average return flight to Ghana starting in June and ending in September for a family of four persons – two adults and two children – can cost approximately £6000-£8000 without accommodation.

This is the same average flight fare to Australia, which takes over 24 hours to fly.

Checks on prices of flights of various airlines revealed that British Airways fares from Ghana to London are lower than prices of other fares from the UK to Accra.