Earlier, airline companies used to give passengers the benefit of lower fares if they booked tickets in advance. As the date of the flight approached, the demand for tickets increased and so did the prices. But now this trend is changing.

Taking the Delhi to Mumbai route as an example, an Akasa Air economy ticket for the next day’s flight costs around Rs. 6,200, Indigo Rs. 6,500 and Air India Rs. 6,900 is available. The same fare is being looked at for the February 2027 flight. Earlier, if you booked a ticket this far in advance, you could get a seat for around Rs 3,800.

Declining number of flights is a major reason

The main reason for this change in airfare is the limited availability of flights. According to aviation experts, IndiGo has reduced the capacity of its flights, while Air India has also been slow to increase its capacity.

When a route has fewer seats than passengers, airline companies have less need to make tickets cheaper. In such a situation passengers do not get the benefit of reduced fares despite booking in advance.

In addition, the number of companies and competition in the Indian aviation market have also decreased over the past few years. After the closure of Jet Airways and GoFirst and the merger of airlines, passengers are left with fewer options than before.

Expensive fuel is also adding to the pressure

Aviation turbine fuel i.e. ATF plays a major role in the operation of aircraft. As the cost increases, so do the operating costs of the airline companies.

Currently, there is uncertainty regarding fuel prices due to international conditions. Companies are pricing tickets by estimating how expensive fuel will be in the future. For this reason, they avoid giving huge discounts even on bookings made several months in advance.

Air travel may still be expensive in 2027

If airlines do not increase the number of flights and seat availability, domestic air fares may remain high next year as well. For travelers, this means that booking tickets just months in advance doesn’t guarantee cheap travel.

However, this does not mean that the fare will always be the same on every route. Prices may vary depending on travel date, festivals, weekends, number of flights and passenger demand.

What should passengers do?

Passengers should compare the prices of different airline companies before booking the ticket. If it is possible to change the date of travel, the fares for nearby dates should also be checked. Apart from this, baggage allowance, seat selection charges and ticket cancellation rules should also be checked.

The most important thing is not to rely solely on booking too far in advance. It would be better to decide to buy tickets only after comparing fares for different dates.