India's largest domestic carrier, IndiGo, reported the highest number of passengers affected by flight delays in July, according to data from the Directorate General of Civil Aviation on Monday. The airline also provided the least facilitation to impacted passengers.
IndiGo's flight delays of over two hours affected 1.66 lakh passengers in July, the highest among all airlines, according to DGCA data. Air India, which ranked second, impacted 61,599 passengers. SpiceJet affected 43,521 passengers, and Vistara affected 6,061 passengers.
Besides, 1.54 lakh passengers were affected by cancellations across all domestic airlines in July, while 3.2 lakh passengers were impacted by delays.
July Aviation Data: Domestic Airlines Report 7.33% Passenger Growth
Minimal Passenger Support
Despite its large market share, IndiGo performed poorly in handling passenger grievances. The airline offered only refreshments to passengers affected by delays of over two hours, with no alternative flights provided. In contrast, Air India provided refreshments, lunch, and transferred passengers to other airlines, while SpiceJet offered refreshments and alternate flights.
The cost incurred by Air India for passenger facilitation in July was Rs 1.08 crore, and SpiceJet spent Rs 92.73 lakh. Data for IndiGo's expenditure was not available with the DGCA for July.
IndiGo’s operator InterGlobe Aviation Ltd. did not respond to NDTV Profit’s request for a comment.
According to the aviation regulator's guidelines issued last year, airlines are required to provide meals, refreshments, an alternate flight, or a full refund depending on the total delay. Airlines are not obliged to compensate for delays caused by extraordinary circumstances beyond their control.
Indigo passenger load factor declined in July to 84.6 percent over June. It carried 80.47 lakh fliers in the month of July and had a market share of 62 percent during the month.
Domestic Airlines Cancelled 7,030 Flights Till May 31: Civil Aviation Ministry. Read more on Business News by NDTV Profit.