Air India will reduce its domestic operations by almost 22% between June and August 2026 due to the sustained impact of high aviation turbine fuel (ATF) prices, following the slashing of international operations. India’s largest carrier IndiGo will also reduce operations by around 7% to optimise its capacity according to market demand.
Air India confirms temporary rationalisation on domestic routes
On Wednesday, Air India announced that it will temporarily rationalise operations on certain domestic routes and reduce frequencies on select routes. While the airline did not reveal the scale of rationalisation or the routes affected, the operations are reportedly set to be reduced by 22%. Air India confirmed that the 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,” an airline spokesperson said, adding that impacted passengers will be proactively assisted with re-accomodation on alternative flights, complimentary date changes or full refunds.
22% cut means over 790 fewer weekly domestic flights
Air India currently operates a network of approximately 4,400 weekly flights, of which roughly 3,600 are domestic and 800 are international. A 22% drop in internal capacity will translate to the removal of more than 790 weekly domestic services. Adding it to the international rationalisation, the carrier will see a reduction of around 1,000 flights every week from June.
Similarly, India’s largest domestic carrier IndiGo will also reduce operations by almost 7% from June, whereas its international operations have already been reduced by 17%. However, sources associated with the airline said that the reduction is not a result of the ATF price hike but a regular capacity optimisation linked to market demand.
While the price hike for domestic routes was capped at 25% by oil marketing companies in April, international routes saw a full-fledged increase of over 100%. This forced Air India to slash its international operations by temporarily suspending operations on five routes while reducing frequency by almost half on 22 routes.
Aviation analysts note that jet fuel typically consumes around 40% of a carrier's operational budget and a rise in fuel prices makes a huge impact on the profit margin. Air India, along with other airlines, has already hiked airfares on domestic routes, but the recent reduction in domestic operations indicates that the cap on price hikes and rising airfares have not made operations sustainable for the carrier.
