TripAdvisor survey: IndiGo is preferred airline third year in a row

IndiGo scores over rivals due to its on-time performance, in-flight maintenance, landing and take-off quality and time taken to deliver baggage

Budget carrier IndiGo has emerged as the preferred airline in domestic skies among 2,500 respondents surveyed by travel site TripAdvisor.

The respondents preferred IndiGo over other airlines due to its on-time performance, in-flight maintenance, landing and take-off quality and time taken to deliver baggage.

The respondents rated full-service carrier Jet Airways best in its ground handling services, website experience, check-in process at the airport, cabin crew appearance, in-flight experience in food, entertainment and comfort in terms of enhanced leg space.

National carrier Air India, however, emerged as the least favourite airline for the third consecutive year.

According to the as many as 53 per cent of the respondents said they would prefer to fly Tata-SIA airways prior to experiencing AirAsia India. Though 48 per cent of the respondents held AirAsia’s entry into the Indian market will bring down fares temporarily.

Emirates was voted as the best international airline, followed by German carrier Lufthansa and Singapore Airlines.

The findings of the survey showed that while most passengers (37 per cent) are comfortable with paying consolidated fares, nearly a quarter (24 per cent) of the respondents said that they would like to pay a basic fare and then pay for additional services as per need. Another 14 per cent of the respondents said that unbundled fares suit the needs largely of solo or overnight business travelers who travel with minimum luggage but are not appropriate for a family going on a holiday.

The high air fares have meant that an increasing number of travelers now feel that airlines are not transparent when it comes to costs. Nearly half the respondents (50 per cent) said domestic airlines are not transparent about all the costs including booking a flight for example cost of - meal, extra baggage costs, etc compared with 42 per cent last year.