Domestic air passenger volume fell 57.21 per cent to 52.71 lakh in October over the year ago period, as airlines continued to operate at a much lower capacity, the Directorate General of Civil Aviation’s (DGCA) data showed on Wednesday.
The number of total passengers carried by domestic airlines in October last year stood at 1.23 crore.
However, passenger load factor (PLF) showed some recovery in October due to increase in demand after easing of lockdown restrictions and onset of festive season, DGCA said.The average load factor of nine domestic airlines, which operated flights during the month, was at 59.2 per cent, with scheduled commuter airline Star Air clocking the best PLF at 71.6 per cent.
State-run helicopter operator Pawan Hans Ltd had the lowest PLF at 21.9 per cent in the previous month.Air India flew 4.94 lakh passengers during October, while IndiGo, the largest carrier by market share, flew 29.7 lakh passengers. Passenger volume of SpiceJet and GoAir stood at 7.04 lakh and 3.95 lakh, respectively, during the month.