Domestic air passenger traffic up

Domestic air passenger traffic was estimated at 103 lakh in September 2022, which was 2 per cent higher compared to 101 lakh in August 2022. It witnessed a year-on-year growth of 46 per cent, as September 2021 was yet to recover from the second wave of COVID-19. However, it fell short by only 10 per cent to the pre- COVID levels of September 2019. The airlines’ capacity deployment in September 2022 was 27 per cent higher than September 2021. However, it was lower by 9 per cent than the pre- COVID levels. On a sequential basis, the number of departures in September 2022 were lower by 2 per cent. International passenger traffic continues to rise since the resumption of the scheduled international operations with effect from 27 March 2022.

Rising prices of aviation turbine fuel (ATF) and the general inflationary environment continue to stifle the industry earnings, with ATF prices in October 2022 higher by 60 per cent on a YoY basis. However, the same declined by 4.5 per cent sequentially.