Sky high: Premium airfares increase much faster than economy class

The ‘premium economy’ class on domestic flights in India has transformed in the past five years, evolving from an overlooked option to a sought-after service. Once a little-known cabin with prices only marginally higher than standard ‘economy’, this intermediate offering has now become a major revenue generator for airlines.

According to aviation analytics firm Cirium, premium-economy fares have skyrocketed up to 128.6 per cent on major domestic routes like Delhi-Mumbai and Mumbai-Bengaluru since 2019. This surge far outpaces the up to 41.3 per cent increase in economy-class fares on the same routes, highlighting a remarkable turnaround for a