Domestic air passenger traffic declines by 2% YoY in April

The domestic air passenger traffic for April 2026 was estimated at 14.08 million, 1.6% lower than 14.31 million in April 2025 and 2% lower than 14.37 million in March 2026, ICRA says.

In FY2026, domestic air passenger traffic stood at 167.74 million, reflecting a year-on-year (YoY) growth of 1.4%, in line with ICRA’s estimates of 0-3%.

The international air passenger traffic for Indian carriers grew by 3.9% to 35 million in FY2026, lower than ICRA’s estimate of 7-9% (drawn before the start of the West Asian conflict).

The airlines’ capacity deployment in April 2026 was 0.6% lower than in April 2025 and 1.4% lower month-on-month compared to March 2026. It is estimated that the domestic aviation industry operated at a Passenger Load Factor (PLF) of 85.9% in April 2026, compared to 86.8% in April 2025 and 83.4% in March 2026.

Air India and IndiGo have announced further reductions in domestic operations between June 1, 2026 and August 31, 2026 due to high jet fuel prices.

The ATF prices announced on May 01, 2026 remained unchanged on a sequential basis but increased by 23.5% on a YoY basis following a 9.2% sequential and 18.2% YoY increase in April 2026 as a result of the West Asian conflict.

In FY2026, the average ATF prices were lower by 4.1% than the average prices in FY2025 as crude oil prices moderated in most of the months in FY2026 on a YoY basis, before hardening after the West Asia conflicts started. Crude oil prices have firmed up significantly in the recent past, which can further impact the ATF prices.