India is expected to have the largest number of aircraft flying by its scheduled airlines latest by December this year, surpassing the previous record of 616 aircraft in January this year, Arun Kumar, Director General, Directorate General of Civil Aviation, told BusinessLine on Wednesday.

Domestic air passenger traffic is expected to clock up high single-digit growth — between seven and nine per cent in 2019 — benefiting from the induction of aircraft by airlines.

The fact that the festival season has started and normally there is a spurt in air travel during this time is also giving confidence to the authorities.

While the growth is less than the double digit growth that the sector saw for over 50 months till earlier this year, it is better than the growth seen in most other markets globally, the official said.

The industry is of the view that Jet Airways’ temporarily ceasing operations in April was one of the primary reasons for the slippage in passenger numbers. Jet Airways had a large fleet of over 100 aircraft including wide-bodied planes which it used for operating on international routes, apart from the smaller Boeing 737 on the domestic skies.

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Published on October 3, 2019