Domestic air passenger traffic remained 44 per cent lower in the April-December 2021 against the corresponding period of FY20, but saw a jump of 52 per cent year-on-year to 111 lakh in December 2021, according to rating agency ICRA. The total domestic passenger traffic had stood at 73 lakh in December 2020, according to a report by the rating agency. It also said that the emergence of new coronavirus variant and reactionary restrictions impacting air travel remain near term-challenges for the airline industry.
State-owned oil companies on Tuesday slashed jet fuel prices by over 3 per cent as an appreciating rupee made imports cheaper.
After rationalising flights and routes, major domestic airlines like Kingfisher, Jet Airways and SpiceJet are introducing sharp cutbacks in staff and salaries to cope with slower passenger growth and rising aviation turbine fuel costs. Manpower typically accounts for 10-15 per cent of an airline's total costs.
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State-owned oil firms on Tuesday cut jet fuel, or ATF, prices by 4 per cent, the first reduction in rates since July, on softening of international oil prices.
Full-service carrier Kingfisher Airlines has sought permission from the petroleum ministry to extend the date for paying dues to public sector oil companies for aviation turbine fuel.
Private carrier Jet Airways is expected to further consolidate its international operations into a major revenue grosser in FY09, to overcome the growing turbulence in the domestic sector. The general economic scenario does not bode well for capacity expansion on domestic routes, with some of these struggling on account of overcapacity, and only yesterday some airlines were pushed to hike fares to make up for higher aviation turbine fuel prices.
Announcing a Re 1 crop insurance scheme for farmers, the deputy CM said the government will bear the financial burden of Rs 3,312 crore.
Jet fuel will cost Rs 37,300 per kl in Mumbai, home to the nation's busiest airport, from Rs 38,246.60. The reduced rates will help cash-strapped airlines cut fuel cost, which constitutes roughly 40 per cent of their operational cost.
Aviation turbine fuel rates in Delhi were raised by Rs 1,297, or 3.2 per cent, to Rs 41,489 per kilolitre effective midnight tonight, said an official of Indian Oil Corporation, the nation's largest oil marketing firm.
Turning down Civil Aviation Minister Praful Patel's plea for a fare cut, full service carrier Kingfisher Airlines on Monday said that at present there was no case for reducing air fare.Other airlines like SpiceJet and IndiGo also said that after the recent round of cuts in fuel surcharge, customers should not expect further benefits in the short term, though there would be some advance purchase packages in January.
Jet fuel constitutes roughly 40 per cent of the operating cost of an airline.
The windfall taxes on domestic crude oil production and fuel exports will generate close to $12 billion (Rs 94,800 crore) for the government in the remainder of the current fiscal while trimming profits of firms such as Reliance Industries Ltd and ONGC, Moody's Investors Service said Tuesday. On July 1, the government imposed windfall gain taxes on the export of petrol, diesel and aviation turbine fuel (ATF), and on the domestic production of crude oil. It has also mandated exporters to meet the requirements of the domestic market first.
Succumbing to government pressure, Vijay Mallya-promoted Kingfisher Airlines on Monday decided to cut fares, but with the condition that the government put aviation turbine fuel in the declared goods category. Kingfisher has also assured that it would not resort to retrenchments to deal with the downturn.
Petrol and diesel price on Sunday was hiked again by 35 paise a litre and the auto fuels now cost a third more than the rate at which ATF is sold to airlines. The fourth straight day of 35 paise per litre hike sent petrol and diesel rates to record highs across the country. The price of petrol in Delhi rose to its highest-ever level of Rs 105.84 a litre and Rs 111.77 per litre in Mumbai, according to a price notification of state-owned fuel retailers.
Currently, OMCs provide A-I a two-month credit. "There was a request from the committee of secretaries to extend the credit on ATF to three months from the existing two months to help Air India.
Airlines have been conducting fuel efficiency analysis, which involves fuel calculations on a daily basis, based on the availability of optimum routes in terms of wind, flight levels and overflying charges, route rationalisation to prune the number of flights and increase utilisation. They also want the Centre to grant ATF a declared goods status, which would result in a uniform levy of 4 per cent sales tax at the state level.
ATF in Delhi will cost Rs 56,324.79 per kilolitre, an increase of Rs 77.93 per litre or 0.13 per cent, from Rs 56,246.86 per kl, an official of the Indian Oil Corporation, the nation's largest fuel retailer said.
The price of aviation turbine fuel, or jet fuel, in Delhi was hiked by Rs 2,797.41 per kilolitre (kl), or 4.5 per cent, to Rs 65,005.59, according to Indian Oil Corp, the nation's largest oil firm.
Mumbai-based Pratibha Shipping Company, which owns six tanker vessels, has secured a contract from Mangalore Refinery & Petrochemicals, a subsidiary of ONGC, for transporting fuel to Mauritius for three years.
The country's oil marketing companies are preparing for another round of increase in the price of aviation turbine fuel on July 1 as the average price of the fuel in international markets has shot up to around $160 per barrel in June from $150 per barrel in May.
After three consecutive hikes, state-run oil companies on Thursday reduced jet fuel or ATF prices marginally by about one per cent in tandem with international rates for the same.Indian Oil, Bharat Petroleum and Hindustan Petroleum cut aviation turbine fuel (ATF) price by Rs 311 per kilolitre in Delhi to Rs 31,615 per kl with effect from midnight tonight, an IOC official said.
Faced with the prospect of $1.5 billion losses owing to a slowdown in passenger traffic and high aviation turbine fuel (ATF) costs, airline companies are cancelling or cutting deliveries of new aircraft due this year or sub-leasing them to other carriers globally.
Low-cost carrier Deccan Aviation is considering rationalisation of some of its routes as a cost-cutting measure in the backdrop of a hike in aviation turbine fuel (ATF) prices, a top company official said.
After two months of price cuts, the state-run oil companies on Friday hiked aviation turbine fuel (ATF) price by a steep 6.5 per cent in step with hardening international rates.
For the second time this month, state-run oil companies on Tuesday cut jet fuel prices to ease the burden on cash-strapped airlines. Aviation turbine fuel (ATF) prices in Delhi was reduced by Rs 649 or 1.6 per cent to Rs 39,319 per kilolitre, effective midnight tonight.
Hike comes on back of a massive 6.14 per cent increase in rates effective from March 16 in line with rising crude oil prices.
The hike comes on back of two massive hikes effected on February 1 and 16.
Domestic airlines may soon be able to hedge their risk of jet fuel prices. The government is considering a proposal to allow Indian carriers to hedge the price risk of aviation turbine fuel purchased from oil marketing companies in the country.
IOC along with its sister PSUs, Bharat Petroleum Corp and Hindustan Petroleum Corp had from September 16 cut jet fuel rates by as much as 3.2 per cent to Rs 37,896.83 per kl.
Hit by soaring fuel prices, the aviation industry is mulling introduction of a "differential fuel surcharge" based on VAT rates in each state to partially offset losses suffered by the air carriers. "Airlines would not be able to survive if the cost of aviation turbine fuel (ATF) is so high and competition brings down the fares," V Thulasidas, chairman and managing director, Air India said.
Aviation Minister Praful Patel has requested FM to rationalise taxes on aviation fuel in Budget 2008-09.
Former Petroleum Minister Ram Naik has flayed the UPA government lowering prices of aviation turbine fuel (ATF), saying India is the only country where ATF is cheaper than petrol.
The state-owned oil firms on Wednesday hiked jet fuel prices by a huge 3.6 per cent to Rs 46,876.58 per kl, making it the fifth straight increase in rates since October when international crude oil prices started rising.
Jet fuel prices on Wednesday were hiked by over 18 per cent -- the steepest ever increase -- to all-time high levels after international oil price surged to a multi-year high.
Rising aviation turbine fuel cost, poor infrastructure, regulatory controls and reluctance of consumers to take to air travel are some of the issues hurting aviation industry in the country, Deccan Aviation executive chairman Captain G R Gopinath said.
State-owned oil firms on Tuesday hiked jet fuel by 5.5 per cent in sync with rise in global rates.
IOC encashed the bank guarantee Kingfisher had given for buying aviation turbine fuel or ATF for its fleet of 75 aircraft, 10 days ago, industry sources said. As on April 20, the private air-carrier owed IOC about Rs 160 crore (Rs 1.6 billion) in fuel bills. It sent a cheque of this amount to IOC but the cheque bounced, forcing IOC to encash the bank guarantee.
Air travel will now become a little expensive as the government has decided to increase the lower limit on airfares by five per cent amid rising aviation turbine fuel (ATF) prices, Civil Aviation Minister Hardeep Singh Puri on Friday. The upper limit on airfares will remain as it is for now. Just a month back, the Centre had increased the lower and upper limits on domestic airfares by 10-30 per cent due to rising ATF prices. While announcing resumption of scheduled domestic flights in May last year, the aviation ministry had placed limits on airfares through seven bands classified on the basis of flight duration.
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