agencies
The spot airfares on major routes, where Vistara cancelled flights on Tuesday, have surged by up to 38 per cent, according to data provided by Cleartrip.
The spot airfares for Tuesday were compared with March 5. Vistara has cancelled 52 flights on routes such as Delhi-Indore, Delhi-Srinagar, Mumbai-Kochi, and Bengaluru-Udaipur as a certain section of pilots went on sick leave, reportedly protesting against the new salary structure that was introduced as part of the airline’s merger with Air India. On the Bengaluru-Udaipur route, the average spot airfare on April 2 was Rs 6,049, compared to Rs 4,368 on March 5, reflecting an increase of approximately 38 per cent. Similarly, on the Delhi-Srinagar route, the average spot airfare on April 2 rose by 30 per cent compared to March 5, according to Cleartrip data.
The impact on the Bengaluru-Udaipur route is significant because only two daily flights operate between the two cities one by Vistara and the other by IndiGo, according to aviation industry sources. The airline did not respond to Business Standard’s request for a statement on this matter. According to sources, Vistara cancelled approximately 25 flights on Wednesday. The airline, a 51:49 joint venture between the Tata Group and Singapore Airlines, operates approximately 350 flights daily. Spot airfare refers to the price of a flight ticket purchased within 24 hours before the flight’s departure.
