Daijiworld Media Network - New Delhi

New Delhi, Apr 24: In March 2025, India’s domestic air travel rebounded strongly, carrying an estimated 14.88?million passengers—11.3?percent more than March?2024 and 5.9?percent above February?2025’s figures of 14.04?million. Over the full fiscal year (April?2024–March?2025), domestic traffic reached 165.71?million—a 7.8?percent year on year increase and 17.1?percent higher than the pre pandemic FY20 total of 141.56?million, reports ICRA.

Internationally, Indian carriers transported 30.95?million passengers in the first 11 months of FY25, marking a 14.6?percent rise over FY24 and a 41.9?percent surge from FY20’s 21.81?million. Capacity deployment in March grew by 8.5?percent year on year and 10.7?percent month on month, aligning with ICRA’s projected 7–10?percent annual growth.

Load factors also improved: domestic passenger load factor hit 88.2?percent in March 2025 (up from 86.0?percent in March?2024) and averaged 87.0?percent for FY25 (versus 88.0?percent in FY24).

Fuel costs provided relief as average Aviation Turbine Fuel (ATF) prices in FY25 were 8?percent lower than the previous year, with notable month on month drops in April, June, September, October, January, and March. April?2025 saw ATF prices fall another 6.1?percent from March and stand 12.9?percent below April?2024 levels.

Looking ahead, ICRA maintains a stable outlook for FY26, citing moderate traffic growth and steady costs. Airlines’ ability to raise fares in step with input costs will be critical for margin expansion.