Rs 20,000 for Delhi-Mumbai flight? Here's why flight ticket prices are soaring
Domestic travel has become unaffordable for the average flyer. Airfares, especially for spot bookings on the country’s busiest routes, have risen three times over the last month. Here's why flight ticket prices are soaring.
FollowHave plans to fly within India? Book your air tickets now. Over the past month, airfares have increased significantly, particularly for spot purchases, or tickets ordered immediately or 24 hours before departure.
Spot airfares for five out of six of the busiest routes have seen a big rise – three times in the past month. The cost of last-minute or immediately-booked tickets is currently destroying the budgets of the average person.
Since the aviation business is a deregulated sector, there is no regulatory agency to oversee airfare in India. As a result, the market forces of supply and demand are what drive the sector. Due to the summer holidays in north India, there is a huge demand for air travel in the month of June.
The collapse of Go First Airlines is another factor contributing to this sharp increase. Go First, the third-largest airline in India, planned to offer more than 1500 flights every week from April to October. People who had purchased tickets through Go First are now trying to purchase seats on other airlines as the airline battles to stay afloat, which has led to greater demand and higher pricing. The lack of such a significant participant at a time when domestic air travel demand is surging is truly affecting the average person.
The bankruptcy of Go First was another explanation given by the Civil Aviation Minister Jyotiraditya Scindia for the increase in the cost of airline tickets on some routes. According to Scindia, because the airline has ceased operations, there are fewer fleets available to meet the strong demand on particular routes, which may be the cause of the sharp increase in ticket costs.
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The subject of the surge in airfares was discussed during a meeting of the Airlines Advisory Group hosted by Scindia on Monday. A mechanism for ensuring reasonable pricing within the high RBDs (Reservation Booking Designator) may be developed by airlines, according to Scindia, who emphasised that airlines must self-monitor airfares on a select number of routes that have recently experienced significant surge pricing, including those that were formerly served by Go First.
