South Asia Aviation Outlook 2018

India expected to remain the fastest growing major aviation market in the world

IN FY2017/2018, INDIA CONTINUED its run as the fastest growing major aviation market in the world. Domestic traffic for the 12 months ended 31-Mar-2018 is expected to be up 18% year-on-year to more than 120 million passengers.
This represents domestic traffic growth of close to 75% in just three years. The result could have been higher still, were it not for the grounding and delayed induction of IndiGo and GoAir aircraft earlier in the year, due to issues with the geared turbofan engines on A320neo equipment. LCC domestic market share stands at approximately 66% and is expected to approach 70% within the next few months.
International traffic is on track to increase more than 10% in FY2017/18 to approximately 65 million passengers. CAPA estimates that the natural growth rate of the market is in the range of 12% to 15% and is being constrained by bilateral restrictions. Several of the largest foreign carriers operating to India - including Emirates, Qatar Airways, Singapore Airlines and Malaysia Airlines - have exhausted their seat entitlements, especially to the metro cities, and are unable to expand capacity. Many carriers are achieving year round average load factors of 85% to 90%, suggesting that traffic is being displaced during peak periods.