Air India has temporarily reduced domestic flight operations by over 20 per cent and international services by more than 25 per cent between June and August, citing sustained pressure from high aviation turbine fuel (ATF) prices and rising operating costs.
The Tata Group-owned carrier operates around 4,400 weekly flights, including nearly 3,600 domestic and 800 international services. The cuts come amid a wider schedule recalibration during the lean travel season, alongside longer flying times on certain overseas routes due to rerouting around restricted airspace.
“In continuation of our previously announced adjustments to select international services between June and August 2026, we have temporarily rationalised operations on certain domestic routes during the same period, with a reduction in frequencies on select routes,” an Air India spokesperson said.
“These adjustments are driven by the sustained impact of high fuel prices on overall operations. Air India will continue to monitor demand and operating conditions closely, with a view to restoring frequencies as conditions stabilise,” the spokesperson added.
The airline said affected passengers will be offered re-accommodation on alternate flights, complimentary date changes or full refunds.
The development comes days after Financial Express reported that Air India would cut around 280 weekly domestic departures from Mumbai between June 1 and August 1, marking the airline’s first major reduction in domestic capacity following recent international network cuts.
Along with frequency reductions, Air India is temporarily suspending flights from Mumbai to Nagpur, Varanasi, Patna and Bhopal during the two-month period. Industry sources said the scale of reductions is marginally higher than last year, particularly from Mumbai, one of the airline’s key domestic hubs. Additional cuts are expected across major cities including Delhi, Ahmedabad, Bengaluru and Chennai. Air India Express, the group’s low-cost arm, is also expected to announce a series of reductions soon.
The domestic pullback follows Air India’s earlier decision to withdraw around 280 weekly international services and suspend eight overseas routes until August. Sources indicated further reductions from hubs such as Delhi and Bengaluru are likely in the coming weeks as airlines recalibrate operations during the July-September lean season. The trend is not limited to Air India, with IndiGo also reshuffling domestic capacity while increasing international frequencies from key hubs.