Domestic air passenger traffic in India decreased by 4.80 per cent in July 2026 compared to the previous year, reaching 1.20 crore, with major airlines experiencing a drop in load factor, according to DGCA data. Despite the overall dip, IndiGo and Air India Group increased their market share.
Civil Aviation Minister Ram Mohan Naidu said the reduction in airport charges is aimed at containing airfare increases and supporting both airlines and passengers.
IndiGo, Air India, and SpiceJet are opposing the government's directive to offer 60% of seats for free selection, arguing it will lead to increased airfares to compensate for lost revenue.
The broader conflict in West Asia, the largest international market for Indian carriers, has forced a sharp reduction in daily flights relative to the summer schedule.
Airlines experienced check-in problems at various airports due to a software issue that lasted over 40 minutes, impacting IndiGo, Air India Express, SpiceJet, and Akasa Air.
Airports across the country have been placed on operational alert to manage potential flight diversions, unscheduled landings and passenger facilitation requirements.
In recent times, there have also been instances of GPS spoofing and interference incidents at Delhi, Mumbai, Kolkata, Amritsar, Hyderabad, Bangalore and Chennai airports.
As many as 338 A320 family aircraft operated by Indian airlines require the software upgrade to address a potential issue related to flight controls, and modifications have been carried out in more than half of the affected fleet, according to DGCA data.
According to the latest data from the aviation regulator DGCA, IndiGo and Air India did not cancel any flights, while Air India Express cancelled four flights due to the system modification process.
Over 100 flights were delayed at the Delhi airport on Friday morning due to technical problems with the air traffic control system and authorities are working to fix the issues, sources said.
'IndiGo is fooling the country and the government has succumbed to it.'
So far this week, more than 90 flights have received bomb threats and most of them have turned out to be hoaxes.
IndiGo, which operates the largest fleet among Indian carriers, has reported the highest number of serious engine-related incidents.
Wadia group-owned no-frills airline GoAir on Monday announced that its managing director Jeh Wadia has stepped down from the position. The airline, however, said that Wadia will continue as a promoter. It also announced the appointment of aviation industry veteran Ben Baldanza as vice chairman at the carrier. Baldanza has been an advisor to the company since 2018 and director since 2019.
In little over a year, Air India and IndiGo have announced plans to purchase up to 170 wide-body planes as they bet on ambitious expansion and efforts also continue to make India a global aviation hub. Also, the two carriers' orders usher in European aircraft maker Airbus into the country's wide-body space, which has traditionally been dominated by US major Boeing. If narrow-body aircraft orders of Air India, IndiGo and Akasa Air are added to the list, the order book is well over 1,200 planes and that too in less than 14 months or since February 2023.
Many argue that the airline could achieve its full potential if Nusli Wadia were to run it the way he does Britannia.
GoAir has temporarily suspended all its international operations -- Dammam, Kuwait, Muscat, Abu Dhabi, Dubai, Bangkok, Phuket and Male -- starting March 17 until April 15.
The airline is currently working to normalise its operations with the support of its pilots and cabin crew and expects to be on track by the end of this week, it said.
The airline is strengthening its flight operations department to make this happen.
The market buzz is that the GoAir promoters are hoping for a valuation that is at least a little more than double its closest rival SpiceJet.
Executives from India's leading airlines are conducting internal meetings to devise alternative routes for their international flights that currently pass through Pakistani airspace.
Of the 48 flights, which are not being operated as part of the curtailed schedule, 42 are of IndiGo and six of GoAir.
Kaushik Khona's second innings at GoAir will be more challenging than the first. Globally, the aviation industry is in deep distress because of the pandemic, reports Aneesh Phadnis.
'The right engine of GoAir flight G8 802 from Ahmedabad to Bengaluru is suspected to have suffered from a foreign object damage (FOD) while on take-off roll,' the airline said.
Some scheduled flights as well as those for which ticket sales are open would be affected.
Delhi, Mumbai, Bengaluru, Ahmedabad, Kochi, Patna and Lucknow, among others, are the cities from where flights have been cancelled.
A 2019 investigation of Bombay Dyeing by market regulator Sebi has put a brake on the initial public offering process of sister company Go Air. The Wadia group-owned low cost airline had earlier planned to launch the IPO to raise Rs 3,600 crore by August, but may be forced to postpone it by a month or two as Sebi completes its investigation.
The Wadia group-owned airline is building a new management team and putting in place strategies for efficient operations. Leading the change is Cornelis Vrieswijk, the airline's new chief executive officer.
The budget carrier has reported a series of incidents involving engine glitches, mainly in its A320 Neo planes, which has resulted in non-availability of some of such planes for operations.
The National Company Law Tribunal (NCLT) on Monday ordered the liquidation of Go First, the budget carrier that stopped flying nearly three years ago after being bogged down by financial woes. In May 2023, the airline filed for a voluntary insolvency resolution process citing financial woes. The tribunal, in a 15-page order, said it is ordering the liquidation of the corporate debtor Go Airlines (India) Ltd.
During De Roni's tenure the airline made profit for two successive years.
Airline's auditor attributes profit to changes in accounting system; GoAir says full disclosure made and auditor's note is unqualified
It has a fleet of 47 planes including 17 Airbus A320Neo. The remainder include Airbus A320Ceo planes.
Edgardo Badiali has been appointed CEO of Wadia-promoted GoAir.
GoAir hopes to fly 15 million passengers by 2016-17, serve 30 destinations, up from 21 now, and will largely remain a domestic airline.
GoAir said the safety and security of the passengers and crew is always accorded high priority.
GoAir is smaller in comparison to its rivals but is still surviving despite financial crisis.
The Wadia-group promoted private carrier GoAir's Chief Executive Officer (CEO) Edgardo Badiali, is believed to have has resigned from his post.
GoAir has launched its Seat of Fortune contest under which three lucky winners per flight will get a free return ticket on a sector of their choice.
The selection gives a boost to the US engine firm, which lost out to rival manufacturer CFM International for IndiGo's 280 aircraft engine order in June.
