Harsh Goenka and IndiGo aircraft
Credit: X@hvgoenka, PTI
Industrialist Harsh Goenka defended the aviation sector, saying airlines had suffered the brunt of inflation over the last 45 years.
In a post on X, the RPG Group Chairperson said one must not ignore the economics that provide affordable travel.
“Before we judge Indian aviation, a reminder: in 45 years, ATF prices are up 20×, aircraft costs 20×, pilot salaries 50×—yet airfares, adjusted for inflation, have fallen (sic),” Goenka said in a post on X on Wednesday.
“We’ll pay ₹5,000 for a 100 km taxi ride but feel unhappy paying the same for 2,500 km by air,” the billionaire said.
“Criticism is fair, but let’s not ignore the economics that keep India flying affordably,” he added.
The comments come in the backdrop of the IndiGo crisis that has resulted in mass cancellations with thousands of passengers being affected. It has now spiralled into one of the worst crises in the Indian aviation industry.
Netizens divided
Goenka's remarks gave way to a heated conversation on the internet. While some supported the businessman, others pointed out the flaws in his argument.
“We expect world-class service at below-cost pricing. Economics don’t work that way forever,” a user said, supporting Goenka.
“Flying got democratized but our expectations didn’t. That’s the real turbulence,” another agreed.
“This puts things in perspective. ATF, aircraft and manpower costs have skyrocketed, yet airfares haven’t climbed anywhere near proportionately. India’s aviation sector deserves more credit than it receives,” a third user shared.
However, some people also criticised Goenka's point of view.
“Wake the hell up to what's been happening in the last two weeks with IndiGo's massive fiasco.. it's a full-blown disaster that's jacked up ticket prices artificially. People were stuck for hours, sometimes days, with kids crying, old folks suffering, and no real help from the airline. During this, prices shot up to ₹30,000–60,000 on some routes. The guy who booked a ₹5,000 ticket months ago, only to have it canceled and then forced to pay ₹50,000 for a new one on the spot. No one complained about paying 5K or 8K for 2500 kms on air travel for sure (sic),” a netizen argued.
Another person pointed out that while airlines carry hundreds of passengers on average in a single aircraft, a taxi can carry only a single party.
“The secret to air travel's affordability lies in economies of scale. An aircraft distributes the operating cost over 150-500 passengers, whereas a taxi ride is a dedicated service for a single party. This massive difference in cost distribution is what allows the Indian aviation industry to offer such an unparalleled value proposition. You can of course compare taxi with the personal aircraft,” the netizen said.
Goenka trolls IndiGo
In a separate post, Goenka shared an AI-generated video to take a dig at IndiGo.
The video shows a rickshaw designed like an IndiGo aircraft and was captioned, “IndiGo’s new fleet: no delays, no diversions… and very reasonable.”