Civil Aviation Ministry Reclaims IndiGo Slots; Airlines Unable to Absorb Vacant Capacity

Of these, IndiGo was to operate the highest number of flights, 15,014, every week. It clearly emerges that, as compared to other airlines, IndiGo will remain busy with its allotted flights.

Jitendra Bhargava, former executive director of Air India and an aviation sector expert, says, "IndiGo's situation is clear for all to see. Air India is trying to stabilize its network after the Vistara merger, while Akasa and other smaller airlines don't have the capacity to take on such large slots."

Most importantly, after IndiGo, Air India is operating the second-highest number of flights, 4,277, which is 0.77 percent fewer than the airline's total flights this summer. Air India Express is also operating six percent fewer flights.

SpiceJet has reported a 26 percent increase in flights, but its market share is only around three percent. On Wednesday, SpiceJet announced that it would add 100 new flights to its already scheduled flights. The company based this figure on the 17 new aircraft purchased in recent months.

Not much can be expected from Akasa Air either. It is expected to operate a higher number of flights during the busy winter season (October 2025) compared to the summer season. From March 2026, 5.7 percent fewer flights (1,027 per week) have been permitted.

Experts say that the availability of vacant slots means there will be pressure on passenger fares. However, the Ministry of Civil Aviation (MoCA) has stated that it will continue to monitor general class airfares on domestic routes following the IndiGo controversy.