Deconstructing the Airline Ticket
To understand the debate, you first need to understand what you are paying for. An Indian airline ticket is far more than just a base fare. It’s a complex bundle of charges. The price you first see is often just the ‘base fare,’ the airline's direct charge for the seat.
Added to this are carrier-imposed surcharges, often linked to fuel, which the airline also keeps. Then come the government and airport charges: a User Development Fee (UDF) for airport infrastructure, an Aviation Security Fee (ASF), and GST, which is 5% for economy class and 12% for premium cabins. Combined, these mandatory taxes and fees can constitute a significant portion of the final price, sometimes over 20-25%. The airline only controls the base fare and its own surcharge; the rest is collected on behalf of other bodies.
The Regulator's Crackdown
The feeling of being nickel-and-dimed has not gone unnoticed. Over the past couple of years, the Directorate General of Civil Aviation (DGCA) and the Ministry of Civil Aviation have sharpened their focus on protecting passengers. The debate reignited with a 2024 directive that forced airlines to “unbundle” services like seat selection, meals, and baggage, making them optional, 'opt-in' purchases rather than included by default. More recently, in early 2026, the government issued a landmark directive mandating that at least 60% of seats on every flight must be available for selection free of charge. This was a direct response to widespread complaints from flyers who found themselves forced to pay extra just to avoid a middle seat, even when the plane was half-empty. The rules also now require airlines to seat families and passengers on the same booking together without levying a fee.
The Airline View: A Battle for Revenue
From the airlines' perspective, these additional charges, known as ancillary revenue, are a financial lifeline in a fiercely competitive, low-margin industry. Ancillary fees—for everything from extra legroom and priority boarding to in-flight snacks and travel insurance—allow carriers to advertise temptingly low base fares to attract customers. For many low-cost carriers, this strategy is central to their business model. Some airlines now generate 15% or more of their total income from these add-ons, with ambitions to push that figure even higher. Airlines argue that high operational costs, particularly the steep taxes on Aviation Turbine Fuel (ATF) in India, leave them with little choice but to find revenue beyond the ticket itself. Unbundling, they contend, gives customers choice: pay less for a basic service or more for added comfort and convenience.
The Passenger’s Predicament
For passengers, however, this model often feels less like choice and more like confusion. The practice of 'drip pricing', where the price slowly increases as you move through the booking process, makes it difficult to compare the true cost of flights between different airlines. A flight that initially appears cheaper can end up being more expensive once mandatory-feeling 'optional' extras are added. Surveys have shown that a majority of Indian flyers feel misled by hidden charges and false urgency tactics, such as pop-ups warning that prices are about to rise. The recent probe ordered by the consumer affairs ministry into exorbitant cancellation fees charged by online travel platforms—often far higher than what the airlines themselves charge—has only added another layer to the public's distrust.
