Explainer: IndiGo adjusts flight path. Tailwinds or headwinds?
Mint explains the rationale for these moves and what it entails for the future of IndiGo and the Indian aviation ecosystem. After covid-related restrictions were eased in May 2020, India’s aviation ecosystem recovered strongly. The visible signs of an expanding economy, a growing middle class, and higher disposable income were credited with for boosting travel across metros and smaller cities.
The potential of growing air traffic was one of the key drivers for airlines to place large aircraft orders since 2023 – Air India (470 aircraft), IndiGo (500), and Akasa (150). According to IndiGo, along with this growth came a change in the profile of travellers and increased demand for a business product. “We have seen a lot of changes in the market and our customers," IndiGo chief executive officer Pieter Elbers told Mint on Monday at the celebratory event of the airline’s 18th anniversary.
“If you listen to your customers, you feel that in flights like Delhi-Bengaluru or Mumbai-Delhi, there is such an increasing demand for a business product that we felt that it was the right moment to make this move." The sale of business class seats on the New Delhi-Mumbai route for travel from 14 November started Tuesday. The fares start at ₹18,018. Data from travel portals show that competitors Air India and Vistara are selling their business class seats on the route for mid-November at fares ranging from ₹26,000 to ₹50,000.
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