Due to the Middle East crisis, Indigo has announced to increase fuel surcharge for domestic and international flights. The impact of the sharp rise in the prices of ATF i.e. Air Turbine Fuel has now directly reached the pockets of air passengers. Amidst the pressure of expensive fuel, the country’s largest airline IndiGo has again changed its fuel charge. Now the new rates will be applicable on all new bookings made from April 2, whether domestic or international travel. Earlier, a flat fuel charge of ₹ 425 was applicable on all domestic routes, now it has been decided on the basis of distance.
Charge ₹275 for journey up to 500 kilometers
₹400 for 500 to 1000 kilometers
₹600 for 1000 to 1500 kilometers
₹800 for 1500 to 2000 kilometers
Fuel charge of ₹ 950 will have to be paid for flights of more than 2000 kilometers.
There has been some relief on short routes, but the expenses for long distance passengers have increased. Fuel Charge was imposed for the first time on March 14, but due to the ongoing tension in the Middle East and rising fuel prices, the airline had to revise it again. This is the second amendment in just three weeks. Fuel Charge was imposed for the first time on March 14, but due to the ongoing tension in West Asia and rising fuel prices, the airline had to revise it again.
The government has intervened on domestic flights, which has provided some relief to the passengers. The Petroleum Ministry and Civil Aviation Ministry have allowed airlines to pass only a partial increase of up to 25 per cent so that there is no sudden jump in ticket prices. The picture is completely different on international flights. Here no limit has been set by the government due to which there has been a sharp increase in fuel charge.
Multifold increase in international routes in three weeks
On March 14, fuel surcharge was fixed at around ₹ 900 for Middle East, ₹ 1,800 for South Asia and China, ₹ 2,300 for Europe. Now from April 2, you will have to pay fuel charge of ₹ 3,000 to ₹ 5,000 for Middle East, ₹ 3,500 to ₹ 5,000 for South Asia and China, ₹ 7,500 for Turkey-Greece and ₹ 10,000 on Europe route. In just three weeks, fuel charges for international travel have increased three to four times.
Fuel charge will affect tickets
This increase in fuel charge will have a direct impact on the total price of the ticket. Especially in international and long distance flights, passengers will now have to pay more than before. The airline says that it has not passed the entire burden on the passengers, but if ATF prices continue to rise like this, there may be a further increase in airfare in the future. According to IATA’s Jet Fuel Monitor, fuel prices in this region have increased by more than 130 percent in the last one month. On international routes, the price of ATF has more than doubled in a month.
All this has happened at a time when the Petroleum Ministry and the Civil Aviation Ministry have jointly decided that only a partial increase of 25 percent will be given to airlines for domestic operations. For this reason, IndiGo has not put the entire burden on the passengers and has fixed different fuel charges according to the distance.