Domestic airlines are cutting capacity across parts of their networks while adding seats on key domestic routes, signalling a more selective approach to capacity deployment as higher fuel costs, aircraft availability constraints and a moderation in traffic growth put pressure on airline economics.
Scheduled airline capacity from India is set to decline 4.5% year-on-year to 22.7 million seats in September from 23.8 million in the same month last year, according to data from aviation analytics firm OAG. Domestic capacity is down 5.6% to 15 million seats from 15.9 million last year, while international capacity has declined 2.1% to 7.7 million from 7.9 million.
The decline comes at a time when airlines are facing higher operating costs, particularly aviation turbine fuel (ATF), while disruptions to international airspace have also affected network planning. With aircraft availability remaining constrained for several carriers like SpicJet, airlines are increasingly having to prioritise routes and deploy available capacity where the economics are more favourable, aviation sector experts said.
The overall reduction in capacity, however, masks significant differences across individual routes.
Mumbai-Delhi, India’s busiest domestic air route, is scheduled to have 677,300 seats in September, up 13.9% from 594,514 seats a year earlier. Capacity on Bengaluru-Pune has risen 26.8% to around 211,999 seats from 167,178, the fastest growth among the major domestic routes tracked by OAG.
Other key routes are also seeing increases. Bengaluru-Delhi capacity is up 2.7% to 446,300 seats from 434,322, while Delhi-Pune has risen 5.7% to 269,504 seats from 254,913. Kolkata-Delhi capacity has increased 3.8% to around 287,536 seats from 276,939.
At the same time, airlines are cutting capacity on several other major city pairs. Seats on Mumbai-Hyderabad have fallen 9.5% to around 198,228 from 219,082 seats, while Mumbai-Chennai capacity is down 8.5% to 195,980 from 214,216. Ahmedabad-Delhi capacity has declined 5.7% to around 217,309 seats from 230,478.
The divergence suggests that airlines are not simply reducing flights across their networks, but are reallocating capacity between routes as they reassess route economics and aircraft deployment.
The market remains dominated by low-cost carriers, which account for 69% of the country’s scheduled capacity in September, compared with 31% for full-service airlines.
IndiGo remains the largest carrier by a wide margin, accounting for 50% of the country’s scheduled capacity with 11.26 million seats in September. Air India follows with 3.22 million seats, and Air India Express 2.61 million.
The capacity adjustments come as passenger traffic growth has moderated after a strong period of expansion last year. Airlines are therefore having to balance the need to grow their networks with higher fuel costs, aircraft constraints and the profitability of individual routes, experts said.
For the industry, the September schedules point to a shift from broad-based capacity expansion towards more targeted deployment of aircraft, with airlines concentrating capacity on routes they consider strategically and commercially important.