Indian Aviation Market

IndiGo crisis exposes risks of airline dominance and operational lapses

The contest for India's 1.4 billion consumers was turning into a fixed match, I had argued in May 2023

Icra cuts FY26 domestic air growth to 4-6%, August traffic stagnates

Icra lowered FY26 domestic air growth forecast to 4-6 per cent from 7-10 per cent, citing global tensions, accident-related hesitancy, and weak demand, as August passenger traffic stagnated

PM Narendra Modi's soaring Indian aviation ambitions face many headwinds

New Delhi says it wants India to be a job-creating global aviation hub along the lines of Dubai, which currently handles much of India's international traffic

India can become net exporter of sustainable aviation fuel: Boeing exec

With aviation contributing roughly 2-3% of global carbon emissions, SAF is viewed as a critical solution for cutting these emissions

India's air passenger traffic to see 7% growth in 2025: Alton Aviation

India's air passenger traffic is expected to grow at a strong pace of 7 per cent in 2025, supported by a growing middle class and increasing air travel affordability, according to Joshua Ng, Director of US-headquartered Alton Aviation Consultancy. Bullish on aviation prospects in India, Ng said the country, which contributes approximately 10 per cent of Asia Pacific's domestic and international air traffic demand, has already returned to pre-pandemic levels. "Such growing demand in turn supports India's massive aviation development programmes including setting up of 150 airports across the country," Ng told PTI on Friday. He further noted that "India's passenger traffic is expected to grow at a strong pace of 7 per cent in 2025, supported by an order book of nearly 1,900 aircraft among airlines based in the country." Besides, "the recent merger between Air India and Vistara is also expected to bring more stability to the industry, with Air India and IndiGo emerging as the two prima

The aim is to make India a top global domestic aviation hub: Minister Naidu

India's civil aviation sector has witnessed rapid growth over the last ten years and now the aim is to make the country the top global domestic aviation hub, Union minister K Rammohan Naidu said on Friday. The civil aviation sector in India has witnessed rapid growth over the last ten years and the aim should be now to become the number one domestic hub globally, Naidu said. Launching the centenary celebration logo on completion of 100 years of Netaji Subhas Chandra Bose International Airport Kolkata, he noted that the last ten years have been glorious for the civil aviation sector with expansion of several airports and the way the number of passengers has expanded. "Under the leadership of the Prime Minister, we have pushed all the boundaries, and now we are the third largest domestic country a civil aviation hub in the whole world itself, and now we need to take it forward," Naidu said. "We need to break the barriers once again, level up the civil aviation sector in the country,

Average airfares around Diwali drop 20-25% on many domestic routes

Air passengers might have a reason to smile this Diwali season as average airfares on many domestic routes have dropped 20-25 per cent compared to the year-ago period, according to an analysis. Increased capacity and the recent fall in oil prices are considered to be among the factors for the fall in air ticket prices. The analysis by travel portal ixigo showed that average airfare on the domestic routes have declined in the range of 20-25 per cent. The prices are for one-way average fare on a 30 days APD (advanced purchase date) basis. For 2023, the time period considered is November 10-16 while it is October 28-November 3 for this year. This is the time around Diwali. The maximum decline of average airfare is 38 per cent for a Bengaluru-Kolkata flight to Rs 6,319 this year from Rs 10,195 last year, as per the analysis. The ticket price on Chennai-Kolkata route has fallen 36 per cent to Rs 5,604 from Rs 8,725. The average airfare for Mumbai-Delhi flight has dropped 34 per cent

Shankh Air gets approval to soar, set to be Uttar Pradesh's first airline

Shankh Air, Uttar Pradesh's first scheduled airline, will hub at Lucknow and Noida, connecting major Indian cities with high-demand interstate and intrastate routes

Global aviation market: Boeing faces a steep climb in catching up to Airbus

The two companies form a duopoly in the global passenger plane market, but Airbus has far outproduced and outsold Boeing in recent years

India to boost helicopter manufacturing, says aviation minister Naidu

Expanding the helicopter industry presents a significant opportunity and the government is set to advance towards manufacturing helicopters, Union Aviation Minister Kinjarapu Rammohan Naidu said on Friday. India is poised for a significant transformation in its aviation sector with the introduction of the Bhartiya Vayuyan Vidheyak Bill, 2024, he said. The Bill was moved for passage in the Lok Sabha on Friday. It promises to enhance the country's aviation capabilities, including helicopter manufacturing and the introduction of seaplanes. In a speech delivered while introducing the Bill, the minister highlighted the potential for growth in India's helicopter industry, noting that the country operated just 250 helicopters at present. "This is a great opportunity to tap into. We are going to manufacture helicopters and the state-of-design element in the Bill will improve the establishment of manufacturing plants and designs," he said. The minister expressed confidence that once the .

Bhartiya Vayuyan Vidheyak to address discrepancies in aviation law: Govt

The government on Thursday said the Bhartiya Vayuyan Vidheyak Bill 2024, which seeks to replace the 90-year-old Aircraft Act, would address the current discrepancies in the aviation law and help the industry grow. Speaking during a discussion on the Bill in the Lok Sabha, Aviation Minister Kinjarapu Rammohan Naidu underscored the need for the new legislation, noting that the Aircraft Act, 1934 has become outdated due to its numerous amendments over the years. The Bill, which was introduced in the Lok Sabha on July 31, is intended to "regulate various aspects of the aviation industry, including the design, manufacture, maintenance, operation, and sale of aircraft". Naidu explained that the 1934 Act had undergone 21 amendments, resulting in ambiguities and contradictions, particularly regarding the powers and functions of internal organizations like the Directorate General of Civil Aviation (DGCA). He pointed out that these issues have created confusion within the aviation sector, ..

Air India in 'good position', to retrofit over 100 planes: CEO Wilson

Air India will be retrofitting more than 100 planes, including 40 wide body planes, and has ordered around 25,000 aircraft seats as part of revamping the fleet, its chief Campbell Wilson said on Wednesday. Emphasising that "plenty of things" are going on as part of the transformation at Air India, Wilson said the focus is on integration, growth, optimisation and customer experience. As part of Tata Group consolidating its aviation business, AIX Connect, formerly AirAsia India, is getting merged with Air India Express and Vistara with Air India. There is "immense flexibility" for the group whether it is full or low cost services and "we are in a good position," the Air India CEO and MD said at the CAPA India Aviation Summit here. According to him, Air India will be retrofitting more than 100 aircraft and has also ordered around 25,000 seats as part of retrofitting the planes. About costs for the airline industry, Wilson said airfares have been underperforming overall inflation. Ai

Airlines ride AI: Less work for agents, human-like responses for passengers

From human-like responses to reduced workload for customer service agents to utilisation of trillions of parameters for answering air passengers' queries, artificial intelligence is providing the technological tailwinds for Indian airlines as they cater to rising traffic. For Air India, which has embarked on a five-year transformation plan, Artificial Intelligence (AI) use will be "pervasive" and its generative AI virtual agent AI.g handles over 1,300 topics. And the country's largest airline IndiGo has AI chatbot 6Eskai that has 1.7 trillion parameters, allowing it to answer questions with ease. Also, the bot can understand written, typed language, and verbal instructions using speech-to-text models. Akasa Air, which describes itself as a "cloud-native and digital-native brand", said it will continue to invest heavily in proven technology solutions across all business functions. India, one of the world's fastest growing civil aviation markets, is seeing rising domestic air traffi

Emirates, Etihad, Qatar Airways see 70% India flyers transit at hubs

This raises govt concerns over undercutting Indian carriers' international plans

Healthy, tough competition in Indian aviation market: IndiGo CEO Elbers

There is healthy and tough competition in the Indian market, which is also price sensitive, the country's largest airline IndiGo's chief Pieter Elbers said and emphasised that there is an enormous demand for travel. At the helm of the airline having a domestic market share of little over 60 per cent and more than 360 aircraft in its fleet, Elbers also mentioned that overall price levels in India are "very very competitive", something that he thinks one should take "as part of the change in India itself and the diversity of India". While air traffic continues to rise and airlines expand their operations by connecting new destinations, there are also concerns in certain quarters about airfares being higher, especially during peak seasons. Air ticket prices in the country are deregulated, and fares are mostly a function of supply and demand. In a recent interview with PTI, Elbers said there is healthy and tough competition in the Indian market. "Indian consumers are really eager to ..

India's aviation industry should embrace new safety rules quickly

Maximum flight times have been cut and the definition of night duty - when reduced work times are enforced - will be broadened under new rules

Christmas cheer: Spot airfares on major domestic routes remain in check

This month, the priority is to maintain fares at a reasonable level to ensure consistently high load factors

NIIF to invest Rs 675 crore in GMR's Bhogapuram airport in Andhra Pradesh

This is part of the financial partnership announced in December 2022 in which NIIF would invest in the equity capital of three airport projects of the GMR group

DGCA plans to come out with framework on gender issues early next year

The Directorate General of Civil Aviation (DGCA) plans to come out with a framework early next year on what could be done to address gender issues, a top official said on Saturday. Speaking at an event here, DGCA chief Vikram Dev Dutt said the issue of gender has been debated at the regulator informally. "Systemically, when we as a regulator when we look within it... we thought we will show the mirror to ourselves as an organisation... early next year... we will come out with a framework for DGCA in terms of what we would do for gender, beyond paper and beyond official circulars," he said. Specific details about the proposed framework could not be immediately ascertained. Dutt also mentioned DGCA's larger role in influencing positive change within the private sector and sought suggestions from stakeholders. Minister of State for Civil Aviation V K Singh said the tremendous growth story in Indian aviation is synonymous with the vision, inspiration, and strength embodied by women in

Is grounded airline Go First even capable of doing test flight, asks lessor

The lessor also said that even physical inspection of the aircraft was not granted by the RP, besides the aircraft not being maintained and records not being provided to them