Due to the operational crisis of the country’s largest airline IndiGo, passengers are suffering due to flight cancellations and delays. Meanwhile, the government data presented in the Lok Sabha on Thursday (December 11, 2025) presented a worrying picture of the Indian aviation sector. Despite the continuously increasing demand, this industry is currently immersed in massive losses.

Only Indigo is profitable
According to the written reply given by the Civil Aviation Ministry, IndiGo was the only major airline to make profit in the financial year 2024-25. The company registered a profit of Rs 7,253 crore during this period. In contrast, government airline Air India suffered a loss of Rs 3,976 crore, Air India Express Rs 5,832 crore, Akasa Air Rs 1,986 crore and Alliance Air suffered a loss of Rs 691 crore. SpiceJet also remained in loss and recorded a loss of Rs 56 crore. The small-scale operator Star Air was an exception, earning a modest profit of Rs 68 crore.

old series of losses
This economic crisis is not new. In the financial year 2022-23, Indian Airlines had incurred a collective loss of more than Rs 18,600 crore. Air India alone lost Rs 11,387 crore, while IndiGo also suffered a loss of Rs 316 crore. Although Indigo made a strong comeback in the next financial year 2023-24 and registered a profit of Rs 8,167 crore, other companies could not get out of the quagmire of losses. Air India suffered a loss of Rs 4,444 crore and SpiceJet suffered a loss of Rs 404 crore.

Demand increased, but debt and cost increased problems
This is the situation when the number of people flying in the country is continuously increasing. In the financial year 2024-25, the number of domestic passengers increased by 7.7% to 16.55 crore. Despite this, airlines are stuck in a cycle of heavy debt, high operating costs and low margins. For this reason, new players are afraid to enter the market, while the demand is continuously touching record levels.

Passengers troubled by Indigo crisis, lack of options increases difficulties
The recent operational crisis of IndiGo, which has about 65% domestic market share, has shaken the entire system. Thousands of flights had to be canceled due to severe crew shortage and new duty-time regulations. Competing airlines are already facing financial crisis, hence passengers are left with very limited options. As a result, crowding at airports is increasing, fares are skyrocketing and passenger dissatisfaction is also increasing.