CHENNAI: The unprecedented chaos at Chennai and other airports across the country after leading airline IndiGo plunged into a major crisis is taking a toll on airfare, with available seats being sold for more than 10 times the usual fare.
As IndiGo flights are fully grounded, Air India and SpiceJet are the only airlines that are operations. Hundreds of frustrated and furious passengers who are trying to catch a seat on one of these flights have learned to their shock that the airfare is out of their reach.
For instance, it costs Rs 60,000 for one ticket to Coimbatore from Chennai, while it is Rs 41,000 to Tiruchy. In the case of the latter route, there are no direct flights connecting the two cities. Hence, it would take a 36-hour long journey via Mumbai and Bengaluru to reach Tiruchy.
Incidentally, this is much more than flights serving longer distances – it costs Rs 36,000 for a flight ticket from Chennai to Delhi, while it is Rs 27,000 to travel to Kochi. Chennai to Bengaluru ticket is being sold at Rs 17,000.
It has already been announced that there will not be any flights from Chennai to various places including Madurai, Thoothukudi, Salem, and Hyderabad on December 5.