Govt puts brakes on free seat rule: 60% flight seats deal scrapped last-minute

New Delhi (The Uttam Hindu): The Central Government has temporarily postponed its earlier order of providing at least 60 percent seats in flights without any additional charges, which was to come into effect from April 20.

The Civil Aviation Ministry, in a letter to the Directorate General of Civil Aviation (DGCA), said the decision has been reviewed following concerns raised by the Federation of Indian Airlines and Akasa Air about the operational and commercial implications of the rule. Airlines had said the rule could impact the fare structure and was not in line with the existing deregulated tariff system.

The government said that considering all these aspects and pending a detailed review of the matter, the provision of providing 60 per cent seats free of cost will not be implemented till further orders. Currently, 20 per cent of the flight seats can be booked without any additional charges, while passengers have to pay a fee for the remaining seats.

Airlines typically charge anywhere from Rs 200 to Rs 2,100 for seat selection, depending on the seat location and features like extra legroom. The original directive, issued by the Civil Aviation Ministry on March 18, was aimed at addressing growing complaints from passengers, especially regarding high charges on services such as seat selection.

The Ministry had issued new guidelines through DGCA, which included passenger welfare provisions like seating passengers together (preferably in adjacent seats) for passengers travelling on the same PNR.

This decision comes at a time when India has become the third largest domestic aviation market in the world and more than 5 lakh passengers travel through Indian airports every day. The ministry said it is committed to maintaining passenger convenience, transparency and safety standards in the aviation sector.