India's domestic air passenger growth is at its lowest in four years

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India's domestic air passenger growth is at its lowest in four years
IndiGo's first Airbus A320neo Reuters

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  • India's domestic aviation traffic has been recorded as 9.1%, according to Directorate General of Civil Aviation (DGCA).
  • The domestic fares in the month of January were over 15% higher than during the same period last year.
  • According to the report, a total of 12.50 million passengers took domestic flights last month.
India's domestic air passenger traffic has slowed down further — with an year-on-year growth of 9.1% in January 2019 — which is the slowest in last four years.

According to the data put out by the Directorate General of Civil Aviation (DGCA), the domestic aviation traffic increased from 11.4 million in January 2018 to 12.5 million for the same period this year.


Over the past four years, the domestic passenger traffic in India has consistently been in double digits. However, the slowdown has been affecting the aviation industry since a few months. According to the industry watchdog, the slow growth may be attributed to the rising fares and lesser demand in contrast. In fact, the domestic fares in the month of January were over 15% higher than during the same period last year.

With AirAsia India as an exception, the other domestic carriers in India reported an year-on-year decline at nearly 3%, in terms of occupancy. While AirAsia, a Tata sons joint venture, recorded nearly 84% occupancy.

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Additionally, weather disruptions played a big part in affecting flight schedules leading to several flight cancellations, thereby affecting the passenger traffic for the carrier. However, the DGCA reportedly said that the downward projection is due to the tourist season coming to an end.

Air traffic and fares were also significantly affected due to operational factors, leading to last minute cancellations, said Aloke Bajpai, CEO, ixigo. The last minute airfares therefore hiked to nearly 20-25% last month, he added.

As per the DGCA's monthly traffic data, a total of 12.50 million passengers took domestic flights last month. While 11.46 million flyers boarded in January 2018 — accounting for the 9% growth, IANS reported.

The rate of cancellations of scheduled domestic carriers was noted at 1.81% — with nearly 917 flyer complaints.

Previously, in August 2014, the domestic traffic growth was recorded at 8.3%.

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