Rs 70k to Bengaluru but Rs 25k to London: Airfares explode amid massive IndiGo crisis; flyers rush for options – The Times of India

Skip Bengaluru. Take a trip to Thailand instead. Or Vietnam. Or London. Or even Singapore. All at a much much much cheaper rate than Delhi to Bengaluru, Goa, Pune or Goa. But you cannot travel to Hyderabad, at least not on Friday, because the tickets are sold out. Ironically, IndiGo flight tickets are available.The situation arose amid IndiGo’s massive operational chaos which has led to the cancellations of hundreds of flights and widespread distress for travellers at airports nationwide. On Friday, the airlines cancelled all departures from Delhi till midnight.

According to the DGCA, IndiGo acknowledged that it had severely miscalculated the number of pilots needed to operate its existing schedule under the new crew duty regulations.The flight ticket fares on Friday for Bengaluru, Pune, Lucknow and Goa, which usually ranges 10k-15k, depending upon the demand and the festival factors, stood at an average of 25k-30k.

A travel portal recently showed the fastest December 5 Delhi connection on Air India at around Rs 70,000 before it sold out; even after the price dipped to roughly Rs 32,000, it remained far above the usual Rs 10,000–15,000 range for that sector. And it’s just a one-way fare.The trend extended across domestic routes: the quickest Delhi–Goa Air India option was priced above Rs 56,000, Delhi–Pune fares were between Rs 30,000 and Rs 40,000, and Delhi–Lucknow tickets crossed Rs 20,000 on Air India Express, with IndiGo selling seats between Rs 9,000 and Rs 17,000.In sharp contrast, international routes appeared far more affordable. Delhi–London fares on Air India began just above Rs 25,000, while Lufthansa and Swiss were priced below Rs 70,000.Taking potshots at the situation, a social media user named Rocky Singh suggested going to Tokyo or New York instead of Bengaluru, given the fare situation.“Going to Bengaluru from Delhi on Air India ? DONT Go to New York or London Or Tokyo instead …. It’s cheaper,” he said.From Delhi to Thailand, Thai Lion Air offered tickets under Rs 10,000, SpiceJet stayed below Rs 15,000, and Air India remained under Rs 25,000. Delhi–Vietnam fares were under Rs 15,000 on Air India and around Rs 25,000 on Thai AirAsia X.“You get food poisoning, I will kill my grandmother,” said Vijaya Srivastava, a 25-year-old news writer, when asked about going to Thailand, given the fares for the day. Even Delhi–Singapore flights were cheaper, with Thai Lion Air under Rs 20,000, Batik Air around Rs 20,000, and Air India at about Rs 30,000.A flyer expressed concern over the situation over “Jodhpur to Bangalore Air India flight 1 lakh rupees”. “This is so unfair of airlines taking advantage of current situation,” Ankita said in a post on X.

IndiGo too nonchalant about it?

While the chaos has been caused by the IndiGo itself, the flyers cited lax management mechanism on the part of the airlines. “Flight radar was more credible source to find the flight status than the website itself,” said a flyer from Delhi, who faced a 7-8 hours delay for Bengaluru flight.Describing the 5am chaos, he said that “every departure gate was crowded with angry passengers who had been waiting from 6 to 8 hours.” There’s no option to cancel as the ticket fares are 3-4 times, so people just prefer to wait.,” he said.Another flyer from Ranchi noted ill management of takeoffs and landings saying, “Passengers had to wait for two hours inside the flight at Delhi airport as the bay area not empty.” “As tempers flared and some travellers began confronting the crew, the pilot said, ‘We are just as helpless as you are,” he said. “I can park the aircraft and offload only when we receive permission’,” the flyer recalled.“Indigo @IndiGo6E ‘s website has no mention whatever of the chaos, and still allows you to book, even for tomorrow between Bengaluru and Hyderabad (which I picked as two of the worst-hit airports). Shouldn’t they be prioritising moving stranded passengers across the country?” a user named Rahul Siddharthan said on X.“And Indigo is still selling tickets with huge margins. Hyd- Blore tickets normally Rs. 3000/- to Rs.4000/- being sold on their App for Rs.11,000/- plus. Even though they know their flights are being cancelled. This called “Make Hay while the sun shine,” another user, posting the screenshot said.

Leader of opposition in Lok Sabha Rahul Gandhi flagged the “govt’s monopoly model” saying that “it’s ordinary Indians who pay the price – in delays, cancellations and helplessness.”He called for a “fair competition in every sector, not match-fixing monopolies.”“IndiGo fiasco is the cost of this Govt’s monopoly model. Once again, it’s ordinary Indians who pay the price – in delays, cancellations and helplessness. India deserves fair competition in every sector, not match-fixing monopolies,” he said.Shiv Sena (UBT) MP Priyanka Chaturvedi took on the government calling out to “shut down the civil aviation ministry”.“I have submitted a calling attention. I was hoping that the civil aviation minister would give information in the Parliament yesterday itself, but unfortunately, that did not happen yesterday. He held a meeting late in the night and issued some directives, but what is the point of directives if so many flights are still being cancelled? If you are not responsible for rising airfares and passenger grievances, then shut down the Civil Aviation Ministry,” she said.