New Delhi, Oct 8 (Agency) The domestic air traffic rose 8.1% year-on-year to 132.3 lakh in September 2024, research and rating firm ICRA said on Tuesday. The number of domestic air travellers in the month of September 2023 was 122.5 lakh. In the first six months (H1) of the current financial year 2024-25, domestic air passenger traffic is estimated at 795.5 lakh, a YoY growth of 5.6%. As per ICRA, the airlines’ capacity deployment in September 2024 was higher than September 2023 by 7.3%, but lower by 1.7% over August 2024.
“It is estimated that the domestic aviation industry operated at a passenger load factor (PLF) of 86.2% in September 2024 against 85.6% in September 2023 and 85.5% in September 2019 (pre-Covid),” the rating agency said. The outlook for the Indian aviation industry, as per ICRA, remains stable, driven by expectations of moderate growth in domestic air passenger traffic and a relatively stable cost environment in FY2025. “The momentum in the air passenger traffic witnessed in FY2024 is likely to marginally taper down to 7-10% in FY2025 (compared to 13% in FY2024), given the high base of FY2024 and lower passenger traffic in Q1 FY2025, impacted by severe heat waves and other weather-related disruptions,” ICRA said. ICRA expects the Indian aviation industry to report a net loss of Rs 20-30 billion in FY2025 and FY2026 each, against Rs 10 billion in FY2024.