Team Blitz India
NEW DELHI: India is the third-largest domestic airline market in the world, up from number five position a decade ago, according to analysis based on OAG data. The data shows India’s domestic airline capacity doubling in a decade from 7.9 million in April 2014 to 15.5 million in April 2024.
In reaching the third slot, India has replaced Brazil (pushed to fourth place with 9.7 million) and Indonesia (relegated to fifth in the rankings with 9.2 million). The US (86.1 million) and China (67.8 million) are still far ahead in the game holding the top two positions.
India’s capacity growth rate of seats over a 10 year average is the highest amongst the top five countries, growing at 6.9 per cent annually, followed by China at 6.3 per cent, the US at 2.4 per cent, Indonesia by 1.1 per cent and Brazil experiencing an annual decline of 0.8 per cent.
OAG says that India’s transition to low cost carriers (LCCs) has been the sharpest among the top five. In April 2024, LCCs accounted for 78.4 per cent of Indian domestic capacity, followed by Indonesia at 68.4 per cent, Brazil at 62.4 per cent, the US at 36.7 per cent, and China at 13.2 per cent).
The LCC growth has been fueled by IndiGo; in the last decade, its market share has nearly doubled from 32 per cent to 62 per cent. While the rest of the market has seen its seat growth averaging 0.7 per annually in the decade, IndiGo has seen a domestic capacity growth of 13.9 per cent annually.
