India’s Domestic Air Traffic Drops 6.34% to 12.126 Million Passengers in August, 2026

India’s domestic aviation sector recorded 12.126 million passenger journeys in August 2026, as per The Business Standard news report. The figure was 821,000 lower than the 12.947 million passengers carried by Indian airlines in August last year. 

The latest DGCA figures translate into a 6.34% year-on-year fall for the month. Passenger traffic for January to August stood at 110.53 million, against 110.726 million during the corresponding period of 2025. 

Air India Group Gains Ground 

There was a change in the market shares of the major airline groups during August. Air India Group accounted for 26.7% of domestic traffic, compared with 24% in July, gaining 2.7 percentage points. 

IndiGo’s share moved in the opposite direction. It fell from 67.4% in July to 65% in August, a reduction of 2.4 percentage points. 

Akasa Air retained its 5.5% share during the month. SpiceJet’s share dropped to 1.2%, compared with 1.6% in July. 

Performance At Major Airports 

The DGCA’s On-Time Performance figures for the 10 major airports placed IndiGo at 91.5% in August. 

Akasa Air recorded 90.5%, while the Air India Group reported an OTP of 83.9%. These figures relate to the scheduled domestic flights covered by the regulator across the 10 airports. 

Cancellations During August 

Scheduled domestic airlines recorded a cancellation rate of 1.39% in August 2026. The monthly decline meant passenger traffic was below the August 2025 level.  

On a cumulative basis, however, the difference remained limited, with January-August traffic down 0.18% from the previous year. 

Read More: UPI Merchant Transactions Largely Unaffected by GST on MDR, Confirms NPCI! 

Conclusion 

Domestic airlines carried 12.126 million passengers in August 2026, down from 12.947 million a year earlier. Passenger traffic during January-August was 110.53 million. 

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