NEW DELHI, June 4: India’s one of the major private airlines IndiGo on Thursday announced the temporary suspension of flights to six international destinations, citing “a traditionally softer demand in the upcoming quarter and an incredibly challenging cost environment.”
The move, which will take effect from July and remain in place until the end of September, comes days after the airline decided to discontinue its Mumbai-Manchester service.
“IndiGo has decided to make temporary adjustments to a limited segment of its international network, including the temporary suspension of operations to Langkawi, Krabi, Ho Chi Minh City, Hong Kong and Shanghai starting July 1, and Siem Reap effective July 3, until September 30, 2026,” the airline’s statement read.
“IndiGo will resume bookings for all the impacted services starting October 1, 2026; however, should the environment become favourable, IndiGo stands prepared to reinstate these services earlier than scheduled, in appropriate lead time,” the airline added.
The country’s largest airline had on Tuesday announced the indefinite suspension of its Mumbai-Manchester non-stop flights from August 31 this year.
“Due to continuing international airspace constraints leading to significantly increased flight duration and a challenging cost environment, IndiGo is having to temporarily discontinue its flight operations to and from Manchester with effect from 31 August 2026. Consequent to this decision, the airline plans to return one of the six Boeing 787-9 Dreamliner aircraft, taken on damp / wet lease, to Norse Atlantic Airways. IndiGo will continue to operate all its remaining long-haul flights as planned,” the airline had said on Tuesday.
IndiGo had damp leased six Boeing 787-9 Dreamliner aircraft from Norse Atlantic Airways in early 2025 with the aim of entering the European market, ahead of the commencement of services using its own Airbus A350 aircraft.
“However, the airline has since experienced a significant impact of prevailing industry-wide challenges, including geopolitical developments” in West Asia, the airline said, adding that “rising aviation turbine fuel (ATF) costs, severe airspace constraints, and foreign exchange volatility” have resulted in operating costs being considerably higher than originally envisaged.
On Thursday, it said that “these measured changes are designed to align capacity with current market conditions and demand trends, while ensuring the airline maintains reliability and network integrity across its global destinations.” “The airline will continue to monitor the situation given the elevated operating costs and continued airspace restrictions,” it said.
(Manas Dasgupta)