Airfare bands are not going to be permanent, an official said.
New Delhi:
Airfare bands are not going to be permanent and will be done away with as soon as normal flight operations resume, Civil Aviation Secretary Pradeep Singh Kharola said on Thursday.
His comments come against the backdrop of restrictions in place on domestic fares that can be charged by airlines since flight services restarted in May last year after being suspended for two months in the wake of the coronavirus pandemic.
Noting that the civil aviation ministry is closely monitoring air traffic, Mr Kharola said, “fare bands are not going to be permanent”.
While flights are operating at 80 per cent capacity of the pre-COVID-19 period, he said the utilisation has only been 60-65 per cent.
“As soon as the normal operation starts, the fare bands will go away,” Mr Kharola added.
In November last year, the capping of fares, subject to certain conditions, was extended to February 24, 2021.
To another query, Mr Kharola said the disinvestment process of Air India is fairly at an “advanced stage”.
“When we say Air India, we mean the Air India family. So Air India goes along with Air India Express and AISATS… this side is Pawan Hans. This would be completed. Air India is, fairly I would say, at an advanced stage,” he said.