According to the latest analysis by ICICI Securities on Indian aviation, the average number of daily fliers in August stands at 326,000 vs 316,000 for the month of July 22. For August, the average number of daily departures remained stable MoM at 2,561 and the average number of fliers per departure increased from 123 in July to 127 in August.
IndiGo market share gains continue; Passenger Load Factor (PLFs) dipped sequentially for all major airlines except for SpiceJet and Vistara:
Airlines that saw market share gain: Air India (+100bps, 9.6 per cent), IndiGo (+190bps, 58.8 per cent), Vistara (+100bps, 10.4 per cent).
Airlines that saw market share decline: SpiceJet (-150bps, 8 per cent), Go First (-130bps, 8.2 per cent), Air Asia (-100bps, 4.6 per cent).
Travel expenses now are close to pre-Covid levels and analysts anticipate further rise in coming quarters owing to inflation. Travel expenses as a percentage of revenue have almost doubled YoY at top-tier IT firms. From ranging between 0.4 per cent and 0.8 per cent of revenue last year, it is currently at 1.1-1.8 per cent.
PLF declined sequentially for all the major airlines in July 22 except for SpiceJet and Vistara, which saw marginal gains. Highest fall was reported by Air India (-430bps, 71.1 per cent) and Go Air (-220bbps, 77 per cent).
Last month, a seasonal element was seen in the decline reported in air traffic. However, decline was higher in FY22: Historically, average MoM decline in domestic PAX had been 2 per cent vs 9 per cent in July. This higher dip in average daily passenger could have been on account of lower corporate travellers in the current mix. Lower passengers also lead to dip in yields in July.
