Government caps domestic airfares as IndiGo crisis sends ticket prices soaring

The central government on Saturday (December 6) has capped domestic airfares after the IndiGo crisis led to widespread flight disruptions and a steep surge in ticket prices.

Fares for flights under 500 km have been capped at ₹7,500, while routes between 500 km and 1,000 km will have a maximum fare of ₹12,000. For long-haul sectors, fares will be capped at ₹15,000 for 1,000–1,500 km routes and ₹18,000 for distances above 1,500 km.

The capped fares will apply across all booking channels, including airline websites and travel portals. Business class and UDAN flights are not covered under these caps.

Also Read: Was the IndiGo crisis engineered? Pilot union says airline ‘arm-twisted’ government into rolling back safety rules

IndiGo cancelled over 400 flights from four major airports — Bengaluru, Mumbai, Delhi and Hyderabad- on Saturday, a day after managing to temporarily secure major relaxations in the second phase of the court-mandated new flight duty and rest period norms for the cockpit crew.

On Friday, when IndiGo cancelled over 1,000 flights from across airports, IndiGo CEO Pieter Elbers, after maintaining a stoic silence over the grave crisis for three days, apologised in a video message for the major inconvenience caused to passengers due to the disruptions. In the one-way video communication, Elbers also said that the airline was expecting fewer than 1,000 flights on Saturday.

It may be mentioned here that on Friday, DGCA provided temporary relief to IndiGo, which is partially owned by Rahul Bhatia, by rolling back the night duty definition to 12 am-5 am from 12 am-6 am earlier, and allowing its pilots to do six night-landings from two earlier, besides other relaxations.

Also Read: IndiGo meltdown: SpiceJet rises to the rescue with 30 emergency flights from Delhi and Mumbai

Meanwhile, the pilots' body, Airlines' Pilots Association (ALPA) India, has taken a "strong" objection to the DGCA's "selective and unsafe" relief to IndiGo, saying that the relaxations have not just "destroyed regulatory parity but also placed millions of passengers at "heightened risk".

Following the meeting convened by the Ministry of Civil Aviation with ALPA India and other pilot associations on December 5, the Ministry announced that it has decided to place the implementation of the revised FDTL CAR in abeyance.

"ALPA India expresses its deep concern that this step directly contradicts the Court's directions, which mandate the enforcement of fatigue-mitigation standards rooted in aviation science," the Association said in a statement late Friday.

It stated that keeping the FDTL in abeyance not only undermines judicial authority but also heightens the risk to pilots and passengers by delaying essential fatigue protections.

Also Read:IndiGo shares fall over 3%, lose ₹16,000 crore in market cap over two sessions

"We urge the (Civil Aviation) Ministry and the regulator to uphold the Court's order in both letter and spirit and to prioritise the safety of the pilots and travelling public above all commercial considerations," ALPA India said.