Domestic air traffic sees 6.1 per cent growth in November 2024, exceeding pre-covid levels, BA

India’s domestic air passenger traffic for November 2024 reached an estimated 144.9 lakh, marking a 6.1 per cent increase compared to the 136.6 lakh recorded in October 2024. Year-on-year, the traffic grew by approximately 13.8 per cent, compared to 127.4 lakh passengers in November 2023, and was 11.9 per cent higher than the pre-Covid levels of 129.5 lakh in November 2019.

For the first eight months of FY2025 (April to November 2024), domestic air traffic stood at 1074.9 lakh, reflecting a growth of 6.7 per cent compared to the same period in the previous year. This is also 12.3 per cent higher than the pre-Covid levels of 957 lakh during the same period in FY2020.

In the international sector, Indian carriers recorded a substantial 15.9 per cent growth in passenger traffic for the first seven months of FY2025, with approximately 190.3 lakh passengers. This performance exceeded the pre-Covid levels of 131 lakh passengers by 45.4 per cent.
Airlines in November 2024 deployed an 8.6 per cent higher capacity compared to November 2023, although it was 1.5 per cent lower than the previous month, October 2024. Passenger load factor (PLF) for November 2024 was 90.4 per cent, up from 86.3 per cent in November 2023 and 89.5 per cent in November 2019, indicating a strong demand for air travel.While the price of aviation turbine fuel (ATF) had seen year-on-year increases from April to July 2024, it dropped significantly in the latter half of the year. From August to December 2024, the prices were lower by 2.2 per cent, 17.8 per cent, 26.5 per cent, 19.6 per cent, and 14.5 per cent respectively, reflecting a decline in operational costs for airlines.