Indian Airline Sector: Relief For Now, But Reforms Get Pushed Around |
Last week, the government took another decisive step towards mitigating the impact of rising jet fuel prices on domestic airlines by rolling out a Rs 10,000 crore Price Stabilisation Fund for aviation turbine fuel. Earlier this month, the government had approved a Rs 5,000 crore credit scheme for the airline sector to neutralise the impact of the ongoing war in West Asia.
Rising fuel costs and operational pressures
Jet fuel prices have roughly doubled in two months—from Rs 60.50 to Rs 142 a litre—because of the West Asia crisis. Fuel, as is well known, accounts for 40–60 per cent of an airline's total costs, and with Pakistan shutting its........