Media365
India’s domestic aviation sector continued its growth trajectory in the first half of 2026, with domestic airlines carrying 8.64 crore (864.04 lakh) passengers between January and June, marking a 1.44 per cent year-on-year increase, according to data released by the Ministry of Civil Aviation. The ministry’s latest traffic report showed that domestic airlines transported 864.04 lakh passengers during the January-June period, compared with 851.74 lakh passengers in the corresponding period last year.
While passenger traffic remained higher on an annual basis, it witnessed a slight moderation on a monthly basis. Domestic carriers flew 134.64 lakh passengers in June 2026, down 1.03 per cent from 136.04 lakh passengers recorded in May, indicating a minor sequential decline despite the broader growth trend.
IndiGo maintained its dominant position in India’s domestic aviation market, accounting for a 64.3 per cent market share during the first six months of 2026. The airline carried 555.83 lakh passengers during the period. The Air India Group, comprising Air India and Air India Express, remained the second-largest player with a 25.7 per cent market share, transporting 221.67 lakh passengers. Among other carriers, Akasa Air carried 47.42 lakh passengers, capturing a 5.5 per cent market share, while SpiceJet transported 28.10 lakh passengers, accounting for 3.3 per cent of the domestic market.
Regional carriers also registered a presence, with Star Air carrying 5.03 lakh passengers (0.6 per cent), Alliance Air transporting 3.47 lakh passengers (0.4 per cent), Fly91 carrying 2.41 lakh passengers (0.3 per cent), and IndiaOne Air flying 0.10 lakh passengers during the period.
The report also highlighted passenger load factors for scheduled domestic airlines in June 2026. Akasa Air recorded the highest passenger load factor at 92.2 per cent, followed by SpiceJet (87.8 per cent), Air India Group (85.5 per cent), IndiGo (85.1 per cent), Star Air (75.0 per cent), Fly91 (73.2 per cent), Alliance Air (61.7 per cent), and IndiaOne Air (59.3 per cent). Passenger load factor is a key operational metric that measures the percentage of available seats occupied by passengers and reflects how efficiently airlines utilise their capacity.
Despite a modest decline in passenger traffic during June, the latest figures indicate that India’s domestic aviation market continues to expand steadily, supported by sustained travel demand, strong market leadership by IndiGo, and high seat occupancy levels across major airlines.
