According to the data unveiled by the Directorate General of Civil Aviation (DGCA), India has reported 13.34% of domestic air traffic growth in October 2018. During October, around 1.18 crore passengers flew on domestic flights. The percentage is the lowest in the last 14 months. The Passenger Load Factor (PLF) that determines the airline’s occupancy too has reported a slowdown. The decrease is evident for most carriers, including IndiGo, AirAsia India and TruJet.
Passenger Occupancy of Airlines
AirIndia witnessed a passenger load factor of 78.8% compared to 81.8% in September. Jet Airways reported a PLF of 81.6% in October, a 3% decrease from September month. Another airline Vistara saw a PLF of 79.7%, from 84.9% in September. SpiceJet, on the other hand, has reported a PLF decrease of 90.8% in October. It was 93.2% in September. Similarly, GoAir has 84.1% PLF in October, which again was 90.6% in September.
High Price of Tickets and Delayed Festive Season are the Reason
DGCA blames the delayed festive seasons this year and 15% increase in ticket fare for this slow down. However, with oil cooling off, prices are likely to be stable ensuring that the maintenance of the growth momentum. Overall, the growth to date since January 2018 continues at a robust 20.11% with Christmas and New Year around the corner; we expect an increase in passenger traffic through to the end of the year, a report by Indian Express quoted Sharat Dhall, Chief Operating Officer - B2C of Yatra.com.
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The airlines Jet Airways, IndiGo and SpiceJet, have reported losses for the quarter ended in September. Regarding market share, Air India, AirAsia India, GoAir And TruJet have witnessed a rise in the market share for October, compared to the previous month. The shift in market share implies that the shares of other major airlines have taken a hit.