Domestic flying to cost more

Domestic flying will become more expensive with the Directorate General of Civil Aviation (DGCA) enhancing the minimum and maximum fares that domestic airlines can charge in the seven categories into which domestic routes are divided.

The increase is in the region of 10 per cent for a one-way fare at the minimum fare level for a flight of less than 40 minutes to about 30 per cent for a maximum fare for a flight of between 180-210 minutes. The revised fares will be charged from those passengers making bookings from Thursday.

When flying resumed on May 25, 2020, after a gap of two month, the government classified flight routes into seven sections — starting with flights of duration of less than 40 minutes in the first category, and going up to flights of 180-210 minutes in the seventh category. The government also decided to cap the minimum and maximum fares for domestic flights in these seven categories.

Now for a flight duration of less than 40 minutes, the minimum fare will start at ₹2,200 instead of ₹2,000 earlier while the maximum which an airline can charge on such flights has been revised to ₹7,800 from ₹6,000 earlier.

The minimum fare that an airline can charge on routes of between 180-210 minutes has been revised by ₹700 to ₹7,200 while the maximum fare which can be charged has been revised by ₹5,600 to ₹24,200.

The actual cost of a one-way ticket will be slightly higher as the passenger will have to bear the cost of User Development Fund, security fee and GST. The decision to revise the fares is in the backdrop of a gradual uptick in the number of passengers flying and IndiGo and SpiceJet, the two listed airlines, showing losses in the quarter ended December 2020. While IndiGo reported a loss of ₹620 crore SpiceJet reported a loss of ₹57 crore during the quarter ended December 2020.