 "Cricket WC final drives highest-ever single-day air traffic at 460,000")
ICC Cricket World Cup 2023 gave a boost to the air traffic in the country, as the number of people taking flights reached its highest at 460,000 on a single day, The Times of India (ToI) reported. This comes a week after Diwali, which recorded low daily flyer numbers at under 400,000. Industry experts said that the airlines were expecting very high traffic, and to make the most of the situation, airlines set high fares more than a month before Diwali. This resulted in air traffic going down, the experts told the newspaper. The high fares directed travellers to premium AC trains.
Expressing his thoughts on the milestone of the highest-ever single-day air traffic, Union Aviation Minister Jyotiraditya Scindia posted on X, formerly Twitter, "A historic milestone for the Indian aviation sector! On November 18, we have set a new record by carrying 456,748 domestic passengers."
Traffic at Mumbai Airport
Mumbai Airport saw its highest-ever one-day traffic on Saturday, November 18. Adani Group Chairman, Gautam Adani posted on X, calling it a historic achievement. Adani said that it is a significant milestone for a single-runway airport serving a record-breaking 161,760 passengers in a single day.
The rise in air traffic comes after November registered muted domestic air traffic, which is uncommon for a festive period.
Airlines hiked prices in advance
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An airline veteran told ToI that the airline operators had hiked advance booking fares since September-end. This led to a large number of people avoiding taking flights. They instead booked AC class tickets for premium trains. On the other hand, during the actual peak travel season, airlines realised the low traffic and lowered fares. It is always the other way around -- lower advance and higher spot fares, the expert told ToI.
Talking about the surge in Saturday's air traffic, Aviation analyst Ameya Joshi told ToI, that Saturday's surge was due to the return traffic, Chhath puja, and the ICC Cricket World Cup final. At 7.24 million, the total number of domestic flyers in the first 18 days of November is less than 7.34 million, recorded during the first 18 days of October, Joshi added.