New Delhi: The Congress party hit out at the Centre on Sunday after reports emerged that Air India may scale back its international flight operations until July, blaming a “gross mismanagement” of the economy and accusing the government of prioritising electoral gains over long term national interests.
In a post on the social media platform X, the opposition party cited media reports and criticised the situation, saying it reflected poorly on the government’s economic management. It described it as alarming that India’s second largest airline was cutting international services for several months.
“The amount of mismanagement of our country is so gross. Imagine India’s second biggest carrier shutting down international flights for next few months,” the party said. “Govt doesn’t care and it is damaging India’s future prospects. Only thing they care is winning state elections,” it added.
The remarks came a day after Air India internally indicated that it had already reduced some international flights for April and May, with further cuts expected in June and July. Reports said the airline’s CEO, Campbell Wilson, had pointed to a “massive rise in jet fuel prices”, ongoing airspace restrictions and longer flying routes as key reasons why several international operations had become financially unviable.
Wilson reportedly described the situation as “extremely challenging”, noting that these factors had hit profitability hard. He said the airline had little choice but to trim schedules further in the coming months as costs continued to rise.
Domestic operations have also been affected, though to a lesser extent. Wilson said government measures to cap the increase in domestic fuel prices at 25 per cent had offered some relief compared with international routes, where cost pressures remained higher.
To manage rising expenses, the airline has already hiked airfares and introduced fuel surcharges. However, Wilson acknowledged there was limited scope for further hikes, as higher ticket prices risk dampening passenger demand and leading to fewer bookings.
(Inputs from IANS)