印度航空计划暂停飞往芝加哥等主要外国目的地的航班

Tata Group-promoted Air India plans to temporarily suspend all flights to certain international destinations such as Chicago as elevated Aviation Turbine Fuel (ATF) prices continue to pressure overseas operations, industry sources told businessline.

Accordingly, the development comes amid indications that discussions between airlines and oil marketing companies (OMCs) on measures to ease international jet fuel prices have failed to yield any material outcome.

When contacted, Air India did not respond to queries sent by businessline.

Speaking to businessline, sources pointed out that the proposal related to the crack spread mechanism for setting international ATF prices has not been accepted by OMCs.

The absence of any immediate pricing relief sources said has increased pressure on airlines operating ultra-long and long-haul international sectors, where fuel costs account for a substantial portion of overall operating expenses.

A senior Air India executive said, on condition of anonymity, that the airline has been engaged in discussions on possible fuel pricing relief for several weeks.

“We have engaged with them for many weeks and discussed many options, but no material progress has been made so far and we cannot wait any longer, so yes, there will be some frequency cuts,” the official said.

Consequently, Air India is understood to have evaluated additional cuts across parts of its overseas network for June, July, and August as part of a broader rationalisation exercise aimed at reducing losses on unviable long-haul sectors.

According to industry insiders, apart from Chicago, the airline is also reviewing operational viability on other routes where profitability has come under pressure due to higher fuel prices and longer flying durations caused by airspace restrictions.

In terms of this month’s flight rationalisation, North America operations were reduced by around 20 per cent, while frequencies on select European, Australian, and Southeast Asian routes were moderated.