india didn’t wake up one morning to find indigo in crisis — the warning signs were blinking red for over a decade.
Kingfisher collapsed. Jet Airways vanished. GoAir suffocated. SpiceJet is on life support.
Yet the government, airport operators, and regulators behaved as if aviation were an endless money fountain.
Today, indigo, the one airline once considered “too strong to fail”, is facing the same systemic choke points.
This isn’t a coincidence. This is a structural failure of India’s aviation ecosystem — predictable, preventable, and entirely man-made.
💥 WHY indigo CRASHED INTO A CRISIS — AND WHY THE government NEVER SAW IT COMING
1️⃣ india Never Learned a Single Lesson from Kingfisher or Jet — Not One
When Kingfisher collapsed under debt (2012), and Jet Airways went bankrupt, that should’ve triggered a complete policy reboot.
Instead, regulators treated both as isolated tragedies — not symptoms of a broken system.
And now?
The same disease is killing IndiGo.
2️⃣ IndiGo’s Crisis Isn’t Sudden — It’s the Inevitable Outcome of Burning Cash to Survive
Ruthless price wars
Ultra-thin profit margins
Skyrocketing operating costs
Currency depreciation
indigo spent years absorbing these shocks alone. Eventually, even the biggest player cracks.
This wasn’t a collapse.
This was a slow-motion trainwreck, visible from miles away.
3️⃣ india Has the WORLD’S Highest Aviation Fuel Prices — And Govt Pretends It's Normal
ATF in india is not just expensive — it’s criminally expensive.
Why?
Because it’s treated like a luxury product, not essential infrastructure.
State taxes, central taxes, cascading levies — airlines bleed long before flights take off.
Meanwhile:
Gulf carriers pay zero tax on aviation fuel. Zero.
The playing field? Not just uneven — it’s a cliff.
4️⃣ airport Charges Are So High They Make london Look Cheap — Literally
India’s privatised airports charge:
Higher landing fees
Higher parking fees
Higher passenger fees
Higher everything
Delhi and mumbai airports are among the most expensive in the world for airlines.
Why?
Because monopolies don’t have to be reasonable — they just have to be profitable.
5️⃣ The Falling Rupee Is the Silent Serial Killer No One Talks About
Aircraft leases.
Spare parts.
Maintenance.
Insurance.
ALL priced in dollars.
When the rupee falls, airline costs explode — but ticket prices cannot increase beyond what passengers can pay.
Result?
Airlines bleed until they collapse.
6️⃣ gulf airlines Thrive Because Their Governments Build Hubs — Ours Builds Headlines
Why do Emirates, qatar Airways, Saudia, and Etihad thrive?
Because their governments:
Subsidise fuel
Keep taxes low
Build world-class airports
Treat aviation as strategic infrastructure
Support airlines during downturns
India?
India sold airports to private monopolies, hiked every possible charge, and then acted shocked when airlines died.
7️⃣ Adani’s airport Monopoly Didn’t Create the Crisis — But It Accelerated the Freefall
When one private conglomerate controls multiple major airports, competition dies.
Costs rise.
Contracts become one-sided.
Airlines lose negotiating power.
It’s simple:
Airlines can’t survive when airports extract more value than the airlines themselves.
8️⃣ india Is Now a Graveyard for airlines — And The Govt Still Thinks The Market Will Fix Itself
Kingfisher
Jet Airways
GoAir
SpiceJet (ICU)
IndiGo (now trembling)
Every warning was loud.
Every collapse was a lesson.
Every failure was a cry for structural reform.
And the government?
Still pretending aviation is a “private sector issue”.
9️⃣ The Real Question: Who’s Next? Because More airlines WILL Die
Unless:
ATF is brought under GST
airport charges are regulated
Rupee exposure is cushioned
Aviation is treated as essential infrastructure
Predatory monopolies are checked
india will keep burying airlines one after another.
And passengers?
They’ll keep paying more for fewer choices, terrible service, and constant cancellations.
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