Domestic flights to cost more as govt raises minimum airfares by 13%-16%

Flights within the country are set to become costlier as the Ministry of Civil Aviation (MoCA) has decided to raise the lower limit on domestic airfares from 13 per cent to 16 per cent, which will come into effect from June 1.

As per an order by MoCA on Friday, "Fare for domestic travel less than 40 minutes of duration will be hiked by Rs 2,300 to Rs 2,600, which is 13 per cent of the current fare."

Flights with duration between 40 minutes to one hour will have fares at a lower limit of Rs 3,300. The fares for such flights were earlier capped by the ministry at Rs 2,900.

Similarly, for flights of duration between 60-90 minutes airfare will be charged at Rs 4,000, 90-120 minutes at Rs 4,700, 150-180 minutes at Rs 6,100 and 180-210 minutes will cost Rs 7,400.

Currently, the airfare for flights in the above period is cheaper by Rs 300 to Rs 1,000. In other words, for instance, a Delhi-Mumbai flight will cost Rs 700 more than the current fare.

An increase in airfares has been attributed on the capacity of the load factors of the passengers. A sudden increase of coronavirus cases in the second wave of COVID pandemic showed a decrease in domestic air travel.

"In view of the sudden surge in the number of active COVID 19 cases across the country, decrease in passenger traffic and passenger load factor, the existing capacity cap of 80 per cent capacity may be read as 50 per cent capacity," MoCA said in the order.

The domestic fare price limit will not include taxes and airport development fees (ADF), which will have to be paid by the passengers.

Earlier in February 2021 ministry had increased lower and upper limits of domestic airfare by 10 per cent to 13 per cent.