Flight cancellations continue in Visakhapatnam as fare surge hits passengers

Air passengers continued to face severe inconvenience on Sunday, December 7, as IndiGo cancelled 10 flights and operated 11 services from Visakhapatnam to various destinations. Despite the government’s cap on ticket fares, airline operators charged steep rates, adding to travellers’ woes.

K. Bhaskara Rao of Visakhapatnam was due to travel from Bengaluru to Visakhapatnam by an IndiGo evening flight. Although the service was initially shown as operating, he received a cancellation message later in the day. Forced to make alternative arrangements, he booked a ticket on Air India but had to pay ₹15,000. His daughter-in-law said the fare was suddenly raised after IndiGo announced the cancellation.

In another instance, Usha Yerra of Hyderabad, who had booked an IndiGo ticket from Coimbatore to Hyderabad, opted not to risk further disruption after receiving the cancellation message. She and her family hired a car to Bengaluru and planned to continue by road to Hyderabad. IndiGo informed her that the refund would be processed within three days.

IndiGo operated the following flights from Visakhapatnam on Sunday: 6E845 to Chennai, 6E579 to Delhi, 6E7129 to Vijayawada, 6E1444 to Abu Dhabi, 6E7381 to Bhubaneswar, 6E779 to Hyderabad, 6E7063 to Tirupati, 6E7296 to Raipur, 6E783 to Hyderabad, 6E216 to Hyderabad and 6E6680 to Delhi.

The cancelled flights were: 6E307 to Hyderabad, 6E218 to Bengaluru, 6E6585 to Mumbai, 6E881 to Chennai, 6E6645 to Hyderabad, 6E6089 to Chennai, 6E2772 to Bengaluru, 6E617 to Kolkata, 6E883 to Hyderabad and 6E6286 to Hyderabad.

According to K. Vijay Mohan, president of the Tours and Travels Association of Andhra, fares from New Delhi to Visakhapatnam on December 6 ranged between ₹73,716 and ₹1,00,682. Fares from Hyderabad to Visakhapatnam were between ₹10,468 and ₹33,769, while the Chennai–Visakhapatnam fare was ₹49,033.

“The ticket from New Delhi to Visakhapatnam, which is normally around ₹10,000, is selling at ₹19,800 on December 7, and for December 8 Air India Express is selling it at ₹27,000. The normal fare from Chennai to Visakhapatnam in Air India Express is around ₹8,000, but it is now being sold at about ₹20,000,” Mr. Vijay Mohan told The Hindu.

He said the government must step in to protect passengers by ensuring full refunds for cancelled flights, permitting rebooking without extra charges, and arranging hotel accommodation for stranded passengers.