Air Fare Hike: Diwali is still several months away, but air fares are already skyrocketing for the festival season. Let us know on which routes the passengers will have to shell out the most.
Air Fare Hike: The festival season will start in India in a few days. During Diwali, people go to their homes in large numbers. In such a situation, there is a tremendous increase in air fares during this period. This year also, there has been a tremendous increase in the air fare for Diwali (Air Fare Hike). According to the report of Business Standard, between November 10 and November 16, 2023, there has been an increase of up to 89 percent in airfares during Diwali. Due to the Go First crisis and problems in the operation of Spice Jet, the increase in fares is being seen manifold.
Highest air fare increased on these routes
According to travel website Ixigo, the average airfare between Delhi and Ahmedabad over 80 days for Diwali week i.e. from November 10 to 16, 2023 is Rs 5,688, which is 72 per cent higher than last year’s Diwali week. It is worth noting that last year, a total of 290 flights were operated by airlines between Delhi and Ahmedabad during Diwali. At the same time, this year this figure can be reduced by 15 percent. In such a situation, if the number of flights is less, the passengers may have to face more problems as well as difficulties in getting tickets. On the other hand, according to the data of Ixigo, there is an increase of 89.11 percent in the airfares on the Delhi-Srinagar route, up to 63 percent on the Bangalore-Hyderabad route. However, airlines companies have planned to operate 41 percent more flights during Diwali.
Go first crisis increased the problem
Talking to Business Standard, the airline executive said that the flights of GoFirst, a company providing cheap air services, are closed from May 3, 2023. It is worth noting that the GoFirst company used to operate a total of 42 aircraft between Delhi and Ahmedabad. Along with this, SpiceJet has also been surrounded by different problems for a long time. In such a situation, now the company has reduced the number of its flights. On the other hand, the rest of the airlines have not yet announced any increase in the number of flights in this route. In such a situation, there is a possibility of further increase in air fare on this route in the coming times.
Huge hike in air fares in June-July
Since the closure of flight operations in May 2023 by the economic crisis-ridden GoFirst, there has been a tremendous increase in air fares on major routes across the country in June and July. Last year, 1.14 crore people had traveled by air during the festive season i.e. October, while in June-July this year, the number of air travelers had increased to 1.24 and 1.21 crore. Along with this, after the stoppage of GoFirst flights, there was a sudden increase in air fares. In such a situation, experts believe that this year also there can be a tremendous increase in the air fare on the main air routes.
