After falling for several months, domestic air travel grew 20.4% in August, thanks to a holiday every week on the occasion of Eid, Independence Day, Rakhi and Janmashtmi.
An impressive 52.6 lakh people flew within the country in August to celebrate the festivals with their loved ones or just to take a break against 43.6 lakh in August last year. This is one of the sharpest month-on-month growth recorded in Indian skies and defies the gravity of economic slowdown.
Low fares charged by airlines till last month also boosted growth in domestic travel. From early September, fares are up almost 30%. Even spot fares were low last month.
The surprise doesn't end here. Air India, which is not exactly the first choice of flyers, saw seat occupancy of 78.7% (Dreamliner figure), second only to low-cost GoAir's 79%. Other airlines had 76% (IndiGo) or lower occupancies.
The sudden rush of flyers in August also meant that the number of passengers facing delays, cancellations or denied boarding also shot up. Around 14,744 flyers faced delays of over two hours, while 6,928 saw their flights cancelled and almost 1,400 were denied boarding.
An impressive 52.6 lakh people flew within the country in August to celebrate the festivals with their loved ones or just to take a break against 43.6 lakh in August last year. This is one of the sharpest month-on-month growth recorded in Indian skies and defies the gravity of economic slowdown.
Low fares charged by airlines till last month also boosted growth in domestic travel. From early September, fares are up almost 30%. Even spot fares were low last month.
The surprise doesn't end here. Air India, which is not exactly the first choice of flyers, saw seat occupancy of 78.7% (Dreamliner figure), second only to low-cost GoAir's 79%. Other airlines had 76% (IndiGo) or lower occupancies.
The sudden rush of flyers in August also meant that the number of passengers facing delays, cancellations or denied boarding also shot up. Around 14,744 flyers faced delays of over two hours, while 6,928 saw their flights cancelled and almost 1,400 were denied boarding.
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