HYDERABAD: For frequent flyers from Hyderabad to other cities, the expected rise in flight ticket prices is expected to make a dent in their pockets. The rise in cost of aviation fuel is said to be the core reason for air fare hikes. To beat the high fares, passengers are trying to find new online tricks to find cheaper air tickets.
Earlier this week the aviation industry had reached out to Ministry of Finance to include Aviation Turbine Fuel (ATF) under the ambit of Goods and Service Tax (GST). The move would have helped the aviation sector avail Input Tax Credit (ITC). Express had reported that this request was, however, shot down. This was closely followed by the fare hike by Indigo airlines.
The airline reintroduced aviation fuel surcharge, that is charged per passenger to cover fluctuating aviation fuel costs and is charging `200 on routes shorter than 1,000 km and `400 on routes longer than 1,000 km. The airline had also announced reintroduction of fuel surcharge on domestic flights effective Wednesday. Other airlines have not so far publicly announced fare hikes.
“If one airline hikes the fares, others will follow,” said Francis Xavier, a corporate lawyer working for a multinational auditing firm in the city. He keeps travelling to Kochi to see his ageing parents. He has been keeping a close watch on the upward trend of fuel prices in the past few weeks and took to the web to find tips that will help him book cheaper flights. “The online booking sites hike the price and everyone knows that. This week `2,000 is the base rate for Kochi and August bookings show `3,000 and above as the base price,” he added.
A quick Google search and you will be flooded with sites that claim to give you tips to book flight tickets “There are many blogs that give tips to help plan international flight bookings but many of those tips are outdated. But they all have once common advice, if you are planning your flight trip months ahead, study the price fluctuation,” said Mukundu M, working in the digital advertising sector,.