The downtime schedule, which came into effect on October 31, 2021, sees a reduction of4.38 percent over the 2019 schedule, with a maximum reduction of 30 percent from SpiceJet. The controller has approved the schedule for 108 airfields in the country.
IndiGo, the country’s largest airline by line and domestic request share, will operate to 71 destinations in the country. Since the last schedule, the airline has returned to Jabalpur and launched breakouts to Gwalior and Bareilly. The induction of ATR 72-600 has indeed helped the airline double the station count in the country.
Alliance Air, the sole government- possessed airline, after the trade of Air India, will operate in 59 metropolises. With just 18 ATR 72-600 aircraft in its line, it’s spreading too thin and it could jeopardise the profitability of the adventure. The airline isn’t operating to Mangaluru, Coimbatore, and Shimla, while adding seven new stations as compared to the launch of the former schedule.
The airline is flying to Aizawl, Bhopal, Shillong, Sindhudurg, Varanasi, Vijayawada and Vizag. Delhi-Shimla, the first RCS-UDAN route, wo n’t be functional presently and the airline has floated a tender for two ATR 42-600 aircraft, which could operate on this route and is in the final stages of induction of the Do-228 aircraft, manufactured at Kanpur, for operations within the NorthEast.Air India, the public carrier, which will change hands soon, will see operations to 54 destinations. In the former season, the airline entered blessings for 56 destinations, one of which was Thoise. This was a military duty.
The airline has pulled out of Khajuraho, conceivably due to the lack of tourism in current times. Khajuraho ranks grandly on the list of destinations for foreign excursionists. While the airline had blessings last time, it didn’t operate.
Air Asia India, which could see this as its last schedule with a possible junction and/ or name change by coming scheduling season, will operate to 18 stations. It started the last season with 20 stations. The airline pulled out of Ahmedabad and Jammu. While its approved schedule lists Port Blair, it’s a military duty.
The airline, in its short continuance, has been at the van of opening and ending stations and routes, which started with Chennai, which was to be its base before it moved to Bengaluru. The airline, latterly, launched and terminated Indore, Nagpur, Agartala, among others.
Vistara will operate to 29 destinations and will get back the downtime destination of Jodhpur in its network while dropping Port Blair. The airline isre-launching breakouts to Dehradun.
How are Go First, SpiceJet doing?
Go First has blessing to fly to 32 stations. In the antedating schedule, the airline entered blessing to fly to 35 stations. Interestingly, the airline has dropped Raipur, Indore, Shirdi, Imphal and Agartala from the former schedule and added Dehradun and Dibrugath, while continuing with Surat. The airline has n’t launched services at these three destinations and time will tell if they do.
SpiceJet, which has shrunk the most in terms of daily breakouts, is also making changes to its schedule. The airline has vacated Vijayawada, Adampur, Ranchi and Lucknow and rather will be concentrating on Bhavnagar, Jaisalmer, Jodhpur, Nashik and Udaipur. It’ll also launch breakouts to Kushinagar latterly this month.
Interestingly, while one would have hoped that the revulsion of schedule will come at the cost of a many stations, it’s actually across multiples and rather of vacating the station, the airline has reduced its presence.
In what looks like a smart strategy, the airline is looking at‘ megahit-and- run’ operations by launching breakouts to Jaisalmer, Jodhpur and Udaipur in downtime. It’ll vacate the stations in summer when these places aren’t seductive for excursionists and make the utmost of the high season.

How are indigenous players doing?
Star Air is farther spreading its bodies and will operate to 16 destinations. The airline is at the van of some unique connections in the country, operating on routes that have limited business that can be fulfilled by its indigenous spurt. Star Air launched Hyderabad and Nashik in the last season and will continue with these stations.

FlyBig, which started from Indore and has ago moved its base to Guwahati, will fly to 10 destinations. Still, its schedule is nebulous as it shows breakouts at destination but not at the origin. With just one aircraft, it’s doubtful that the airline can manage as numerous breakouts as mentioned in the schedule.
TruJet, which has been in the news for change of power as well as possible investments, will operate to all the stations it has proposed in the last schedule as well. While the airline has blessings to operate to Keshod, it’s yet to begin services indeed after the airdrome has attained licence.

Tail Note
While over 100 airfields are functional, 27 have only one airline driver. Bengaluru, Mumbai and Hyderabad are the four airfields where there are nine drivers. FlyBig is missing at all these airfields!

While IndiGo is farther consolidating its hold over the request, SpiceJet is shrinking across the country. The real survival challenge is for the lower players, who, with limited force, are spread too thin. While multiple routes are under RCS-UDAN and they’ve a monopoly, that can not be a endless food model and is presumably delaying the ineluctable to hereafter!
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