Most airlines recorded lower occupancy on Diwali day on October 24, with their passenger load factor slipping considerably in to the range of 65 to 70 per cent as against 80-85 per cent during recent days.

Leading Indian carrier Indigo on Monday witnessed PLF of 64.5 per cent while Vistara and Air India recorded the PLF of 63 per cent and 67.3 per cent, respectively, on Monday, on the day of Diwaali celebration.

As per industry sources, higher air fare during the festival on most of the routes was one of the main reasons behind lower occupancy of airlines. Airfares on many busy routes including Delhi-Mumbai, Delhi-Bengaluru, and other routes were nearly up by more than 50 per cent keeping in mind the festive rush. This might have acted as a deterrent for some and can be the reason for lower occupancy, said an industry source.

The analyst said that the air fares have generally become more competitive on many routes, particularly after the entry of Akasa Air and during general days, tickets were available at lower prices.

As per latest data of the aviation regulator, the passenger load factor or occupancy of the airlines remained on the higher side in the range of 75 to 85 per cent during September. The data said that domestic aviation traffic in the country continues to record growth as passengers carried by domestic airlines during January-September 2022 were 8.74 crore as against 5.31 crore during the corresponding period of previous year, thereby registering annual growth of 64.61 per cent.