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Indian Airlines Cut 8.5% of Scheduled Flights as West Asia Conflict, Fuel Costs Bite

Indian airlines scheduled 8.5% fewer flights for July–September 2026 compared to last year, as carriers adjust to airspace restrictions, high jet fuel prices, and reduced demand. Foreign airlines gained ground, carrying about 450,000 more passengers out of India in the first half, while Indian carriers lost 1.76 million. Air India and IndiGo cite external disruptions and rising costs as they trim international routes.

By Tertius News AI Desk 2 distinct · 2 mastheads · 2 articles Version 1 Coverage Sep 1–2, 2026 Published 1h ago

Flight Cuts and Network Adjustments

Indian airlines scheduled 8.5% fewer domestic and international flights for the July–September period compared with the same time last year, according to an analysis of data from global travel data provider OAG. Eight carriers—IndiGo, Air India, Air India Express, Akasa Air, SpiceJet, Alliance Air, Star Air and IndiaOne Air—listed 273,549 flights for the quarter, down from 298,939 in the corresponding period of 2025.

Airlines have been adjusting their networks amid operational disruptions, geopolitical constraints and reduced demand, the data shows. In May, Air India announced plans to rationalise services on selected international routes between June and August, citing airspace restrictions over certain regions and record-high jet fuel prices that were affecting the commercial viability of planned services. That same month, IndiGo's Managing Director Rahul Bhatia said the conflict in West Asia had caused route disruptions and pushed up jet fuel prices, requiring airlines to take "certain short-term measures to protect operational viability."

Aviation turbine fuel (ATF), which accounts for up to 40% of an airline's operating costs, has become more expensive amid the conflict. After falling from Rs 115 per litre in June to Rs 110 in July, domestic ATF prices rose back to Rs 115 in August and then to Rs 121.28 on September 1, as reported by Forbes India.

Foreign Carriers Gain Ground

Foreign airlines flew about 450,000 more passengers out of India in the first six months of 2026 compared with the same period a year earlier, even as Indian carriers lost 1.76 million, according to Livemint. Total international passengers departing India fell 7% year-on-year to 18.40 million from 19.71 million. Indian airlines carried 7.3 million passengers from India in January–June 2026, down 19.4% from 9.06 million a year earlier. Foreign carriers, in contrast, carried 11.1 million passengers, up 4.2% from 10.65 million. The Directorate General of Civil Aviation does not share departure data for foreign carriers from India.

Among foreign airlines, Emirates, the largest carrier in India, held broadly stable, carrying 1.40 million passengers from India in the period compared with 1.44 million a year earlier. Etihad carried 830,000 (up from 800,000), while Singapore Airlines grew to 680,000 (from 640,000). Lufthansa increased its traffic to 400,000 from 380,000, and Cathay Pacific rose to 330,000 from 270,000. Swiss and KLM also saw their India traffic rise, to 100,000 and 180,000 respectively, from 80,000 and 160,000. Together, these seven carriers moved about 3.92 million passengers from India in the first six months, according to Livemint.

Indian Carriers' Challenges

Air India, whose long-haul westward routes took the heaviest hit, had warned that a one-year closure of Pakistani airspace could cost it nearly ₹4,000 crore. The airline began cutting routes in April as group-level losses surged past ₹22,000 crore. It expects to start restoring these rationalised routes from September onward, Livemint reported.

IndiGo's international departures fell 10% to 43,353 in the first half of 2026 from 48,082 a year earlier, while international passenger departures declined 9% to 3.64 million from 3.98 million. Although a smaller capacity cut leaves IndiGo better positioned than some rivals, the airline is still grappling with higher international flying costs driven by longer flight paths, according to the report.

IndiGo chief executive Pieter Elbers described the operating environment as an "extreme set of external conditions." Goh Choon Phong, CEO of Singapore Airlines, noted that Air India's challenges were "largely external." ICRA Ltd reported that international passenger traffic declined sharply by 23% year-on-year in 4M FY27, attributing it to "disruptions caused by the West Asian conflict," and projected a 3–6% decline in FY27 for Indian carriers' international traffic.

Outlook

Despite the current cuts, there are signs of recovery. Air India expects to begin restoring rationalised routes from September, and a senior government official, Shah, said Indian carriers should be able to restore international capacity. The data suggests that while Indian airlines face near-term headwinds from fuel costs and airspace restrictions, foreign carriers have been able to expand their presence in the market.

How each outlet told it

A framing line is our reading of that outlet's own text — an interpretation, not a quotation and not a fact we assert. Check it against what the outlet published.

Forbes India

Framing: Highlights the percentage reduction in Indian airline flights for July — Neutral and factual, with a focus on operational and economic factors.

as of Sep 1, 2026, 3:18 PM UTC

Facts Included:

Eight Indian airlines—IndiGo, Air India, Air India Express, Akasa Air, SpiceJet, Alliance Air, Star Air and IndiaOne Air—scheduled 273,549 flights for July-September 2026, down from 298,939 flights in the corresponding period last year.
Air India announced plans to rationalise services on select international routes between June and August, citing airspace restrictions and record-high jet fuel prices.
IndiGo’s Managing Director Rahul Bhatia said the conflict in West Asia caused route disruptions and pushed up jet fuel prices, requiring 'certain short-term measures to protect operational viability'.
Aviation turbine fuel (ATF), which accounts for up to 40 percent of an airline's operating costs, has become more expensive amid the conflict in West Asia.

Read the source article →

Livemint

Framing: Highlights foreign airlines gaining ground as Indian carriers reduce international flights in the first half of 2026. — Measured and analytical, presenting data and expert commentary without overt alarm or celebration.

as of Sep 2, 2026, 2:19 AM UTC

Facts Included:

Foreign airlines flew about 450,000 more passengers out of India in the first six months of 2026.
Air India warned that a one-year closure of Pakistani airspace could cost it nearly ₹4,000 crore.
Air India began cutting routes in April as group-level losses surged past ₹22,000 crore.
IndiGo’s international departures fell 10% to 43,353 in the first half 2026 from 48,082 a year earlier.
Etihad carried 830,000 (up from 800,000), Singapore Airlines grew to 680,000 (from 640,000).
Swiss and KLM saw India traffic rise to 100,000 and 180,000, respectively.
IndiGo chief executive Pieter Elbers characterized the operating environment as an 'extreme set of external conditions'.
Goh Choon Phong, CEO of Singapore Airlines, noted that Air India's challenges were 'largely external'.
ICRA Ltd reported international passenger traffic declined sharply by 23% year-on-year in 4M FY27, attributing it to 'disruptions caused by the West Asian conflict'.
ICRA projected a 3-6% decline in FY27 for Indian carriers' international traffic.
Shah said Indian carriers should be able to restore international capacity.

Read the source article →

What was claimed, and who backed it

AI-extracted; can misattribute a claim — see Methodology.

Each row is one claim, attributed to the outlet whose wording states it most clearly. Confidence rates how directly the source text states the claim — explicit and unhedged rates high; hedged, pieced-together, or internally inconsistent statements rate lower. It does not measure whether the claim is true. Status is Contested when two claims on this page negate each other; otherwise it counts the distinct outlets we found asserting that specific claim — so a single-source claim can still show high confidence, and a multi-source claim can show medium. Every one of those outlets is named beside the status, so you can check the count against the list. For claims extracted before we began storing that list, the row says so: it names the outlet the claim is quoted from and states that we have not recorded which outlets backed it. Outlets wrote at different times, so a figure that evolves — a casualty count, for example — can legitimately differ between rows; check the "as of" time next to each claim's source.

Claim	Confidence	Status
ClaimForeign airlines flew about 450,000 more passengers out of India in the first six months of 2026 compared to the same period in 2025.	ConfidenceHigh	StatusSingle-source via Livemint as of Sep 2, 2026, 2:19 AM UTC
ClaimAir India warned that a one-year closure of Pakistani airspace could cost it nearly ₹4,000 crore.	ConfidenceHigh	StatusSingle-source via Livemint as of Sep 2, 2026, 2:19 AM UTC
ClaimAir India began cutting routes in April as group-level losses surged past ₹22,000 crore.	ConfidenceHigh	StatusSingle-source via Livemint as of Sep 2, 2026, 2:19 AM UTC
ClaimIndiGo's international departures fell 10% to 43,353 in the first half of 2026 from 48,082 a year earlier.	ConfidenceHigh	StatusSingle-source via Livemint as of Sep 2, 2026, 2:19 AM UTC
ClaimEtihad carried 830,000 passengers from India in the first half of 2026, up from 800,000 in the same period a year earlier.	ConfidenceHigh	StatusSingle-source via Livemint as of Sep 2, 2026, 2:19 AM UTC
ClaimSingapore Airlines grew to 680,000 passengers from India in the first half of 2026, up from 640,000 in the same period a year earlier.	ConfidenceHigh	StatusSingle-source via Livemint as of Sep 2, 2026, 2:19 AM UTC
ClaimSwiss saw its India traffic rise to 100,000 passengers in the first half of 2026, up from 80,000.	ConfidenceHigh	StatusContested via Livemint as of Sep 2, 2026, 2:19 AM UTC
ClaimKLM saw its India traffic rise to 180,000 passengers in the first half of 2026, up from 160,000.	ConfidenceHigh	StatusContested via Livemint as of Sep 2, 2026, 2:19 AM UTC

Transparency & Audit Trail

2 distinct · 2 mastheads · 2 articles consulted: Forbes India, Livemint 8 claims extracted Version 1 Written 2026-09-02