IndiGo forecasts slowdown in capacity growth next year: What airline said

IndiGo’s capacity grew by almost 27% last quarter, while the number of passengers carried rose by more than 23%.

InterGlobe Aviation Ltd., which operates India’s biggest airline IndiGo, forecast slower capacity growth in the fiscal year starting April 1.

An IndiGo airlines passenger aircraft taxis on the tarmac at Chhatrapati Shivaji International airport in Mumbai. (Reuters)

The budget carrier expects capacity to grow in the “early double digits” next year, with a similar rate of increase in the number of passengers it flies, it said in an analyst presentation Friday. The pace is slower than growth seen in the December quarter and guidance for the current financial year.

IndiGo’s capacity grew by almost 27% last quarter, while the number of passengers carried rose by more than 23%. The airline also said it met its guidance of capacity expansion in “north of mid-teens” and flying more than 100 million passengers in the financial year ending March 31.

The carrier aims to add more than one aircraft to its fleet every week next year. As of Feb. 29, it operated 366 planes, and had a further 960 on order.

IndiGo dominates India’s domestic aviation market despite some erosion in market — which fell to around 60% in February from more than 63% in July, according to data from India’s aviation regulator.