Charter flights from Middle East and demand from India’s tier-2 cities give us hope: IndiGo CEO Ronojoy Dutta

Demand for charter flights from tier-2 cities is encouraging, IndiGo CEO Ronojoy Dutta has said. At present, the country’s largest airline is operating at 30% of its capacity, as restrictions by state governments on travel is hurting traffic.

“The demand shows that we will reach 80% of our capacity by early next year,” Dutta said while addressing a webinar.

“Our charter flights from the Middle East are good. And there is growth in smaller cities,” Dutta said. He said the airline’s passenger loads are decent, but added that in a route like Delhi-Ranchi, one leg may have 15 passengers, and the second will have a full flight of 180 fliers.

However, he noted that restrictions announced by some states, including Maharashtra, Tamil Nadu and West Bengal, was hurting traffic.

Noting that fixed costs are as high as 40% for airlines, Dutta said IndiGo was spending Rs 40 crore a day during the lockdown. “That number has come down. We are trying to whittle that down further by flying more,” he said.

The IndiGo CEO added that the airline has cut salaries and sent employees on leave without pay to conserve cash.