Airlines cutting fares to beat lean season

If you plan your holiday in advance, you may get a free air ticket (excluding taxes) to Goa next month from budget carriers. Or if you want to fly a legacy carrier, you may fetch a fair deal to Goa for less than Rs 1,000. Nearly 10 lakh seats are up for grab in March at such special rates from domestic airlines.

After enjoying a peak season, domestic airlines are all set for another round of fare war as March is a lean season.

While budget carriers, such as Air Deccan, GoAir and SpiceJet, are reducing fares to stimulate the airtravel market, full-service carriers are giving a tough fight to divert traffic from their low-fare peers.

For instance, Jet Airways offers 1 lakh seats at special fares for travelling in March. Under this promotional fare, targeting at creaming the passengers of budget carriers, one will get Mumbai-Goa at Rs 999, excluding taxes, while Mumbai-Delhi at Rs 2,299 against a low fare option of Rs 5,000 in both case, including taxes.

Indian Airlines has also revised its unchecked and spot fares (tickets 6 hours before the travel) downwards in various categories and sectors.

Indian Airlines is offering Mumbai-Delhi at Rs 3,555 as unchecked and Rs 3,575 as spot fares (both inclusive of taxes!). Mumbai-Goa will be available at Rs 2,000 as unchecked while Rs 1,925 as spot fare, both inclusive of taxes.

"Traditionally March is a weaker month for domestic airtravel. Essentially, the offers are to stimulate the passengers to travel. For Jet Airways, offering a small portion of its inventory at special fares is not a big deal," says Kapil Kaul, CEO of Centre for Asia Pacific Aviation's (CAPA), a leading aviation consultancy firm.

A senior Jet Airways executive says that these special promotional fares that are more or less same as fares of budget carriers are targeted at incremental traffic in a weaker market. "This will also divert traffic from low fare carriers to us," he adds.

Meanwhile, budget carrier GoAir has eliminated the extra charges payable on all modes of ticket bookings along with announcing GoFly@ Rs 0.

"The Rs zero offer allows passengers the chance of flying freely to all 13 Indian GoAir destinations on bookings made till 22 February for travel between March 1 to 25," a GoAir executive said.

The country's leading low fare carrier Air Deccan has also launched Re 1 fare for new sectors launched recently while the Delhi-based SpiceJet has introduced 99 paise fare on travelling up to April 15.