The Civil Aviation Ministry has granted no objection certificates (NOCs) to two new airlines, Al Hind Air and FlyExpress, as it steps up efforts to reduce the dominance of a handful of carriers in India's domestic aviation market.
The approvals come amid renewed concern over the sector's growing duopoly, with IndiGo and the Air India Group together controlling over 90 per cent of the domestic market. IndiGo alone accounts for more than 65 per cent, raising worries about the risks of over-dependence on a single airline.
Those concerns sharpened earlier this month after widespread operational disruptions at IndiGo led to significant schedule collapses, affecting thousands of passengers and highlighting vulnerabilities in a highly concentrated industry.
Civil Aviation Minister K Rammohan Naidu confirmed the latest clearances in a post on X on Tuesday. He said the ministry had held meetings with teams from Shankh Air, Al Hind Air and FlyExpress. While Uttar Pradesh-based Shankh Air already holds an NOC and is expected to begin commercial operations in 2026, Al Hind Air and FlyExpress received their clearances this week.
The entry of new players is part of the government's broader push to widen participation in the sector. At present, only nine scheduled domestic airlines are operational in India, a number that shrank further in October after regional carrier Fly Big suspended its scheduled flights.
Al Hind Air is being promoted by the Kerala-based Alhind Group, while FlyExpress joins a growing list of aspirant carriers seeking to enter a market where scale, pricing power and network reach remain heavily concentrated among a few players.
The minister said encouraging more airlines has been a consistent policy objective, given the rapid growth in air travel demand. He pointed to initiatives such as the UDAN (Ude Desh ka Aam Naagrik) scheme, which focuses on improving regional connectivity and has enabled smaller airlines to operate on underserved routes.
Under UDAN, carriers including Star Air, India One Air and Fly91 have expanded services to smaller cities, helping integrate them into the national aviation network. The government believes there is still significant room for growth in this segment.
According to the Directorate General of Civil Aviation (DGCA), India's current roster of scheduled domestic airlines includes IndiGo, Air India, Air India Express, state-owned Alliance Air, Akasa Air, SpiceJet, Star Air, Fly91 and IndiaOne Air.
However, the push for fresh competition comes against a backdrop of repeated airline failures. In recent years, carriers such as Jet Airways and Go First shut down operations after being crippled by debt and operational challenges, underscoring the volatility and high-risk nature of India's aviation sector even as demand continues to rise.
