SpiceJet’s on-time performance sank to just 34.5 percent in July, according to newly released Directorate General of Civil Aviation figures, well behind the rest of the domestic sector.
IndiGo posted the strongest on-time record at 91.2 percent, with Akasa Air close behind at 90.8 percent, while Air India recorded 86.5 percent for the month.
The gap comes even as overall domestic air passenger traffic fell nearly 5 percent year-on-year in July, with Indian carriers flying around 1.2 crore passengers.
IndiGo remained the dominant domestic carrier with a 67.4 percent market share and 80.82 lakh passengers, while the Air India group held a 24 percent share with 28.75 lakh passengers.
SpiceJet’s market share has shrunk to just 1.6 percent, with only 1.87 lakh passengers carried in July, a steep fall from the airline’s earlier standing in the market.
The data extends a difficult year for SpiceJet, which continues to face scrutiny over operational reliability while IndiGo and Akasa Air post consistently strong punctuality numbers.
DGCA’s on-time performance data covers 10 major airports, including Delhi, Mumbai, Bengaluru, Hyderabad, Chennai, Kolkata, Ahmedabad, Cochin, Guwahati and Lucknow.
Under DGCA’s criteria, a flight is classified as delayed if its departure is more than 15 minutes behind the scheduled time.
Overall flight cancellation rates across Indian carriers stood at 0.62 percent in July, with technical issues accounting for nearly 40 percent of all cancellations.
Among airports, Chennai recorded the best on-time performance overall at 96.7 percent in July, followed by Bengaluru at 94 percent and Hyderabad at 92.4 percent.
IndiGo carried 80.82 lakh passengers in July, giving it a dominant 67.4 percent share of the domestic market, well ahead of the Air India group’s 24 percent share.
Akasa Air carried 6.65 lakh passengers for a 5.5 percent market share in July, while SpiceJet’s share slipped further to just 1.6 percent with 1.87 lakh passengers.
Photo by Rehman Abubakr, Wikimedia Commons, CC BY-SA 4.0
