Air India, Air India Express to levy fuel surcharge; airfares set to rise

Airfares are set to rise with Air India and Air India Express deciding to levy a fuel surcharge of ₹399 on each domestic flight ticket from March 12 and also hike the charge for international bookings due to a steep rise in jet fuel prices amid the Middle East conflict.

The new fuel surcharges will be implemented in a phased manner.

Regretting the need for fuel surcharges, Air India on Tuesday said that without such surcharges, "it is likely that some flights would be unable to cover operating costs and would have to be cancelled".

In the first phase, a fuel surcharge of ₹399 per domestic flight ticket would be imposed from March 12, and the same will also be applicable for SAARC flights, a statement said on Tuesday.

For West Asia flights, the fuel surcharge will be $10 and hiked by $30 to $90 for Africa flights and by $20 to $60 for Southeast Asia services.

All these changes will be effective from March 12, including for flights to and from Singapore. Currently, there is no fuel surcharge for Singapore services.

In the second phase, Air India will increase the fuel surcharge by $25 to $50 for flights to Europe, North America and Australia starting from March 18.

Fuel surcharge for Europe flights will rise to $125 from $100, and for North America flights, the same will increase from $150 to $200.

As per the statement, the fuel surcharge for Australia flights will increase from $150 to $200.

Currently, Air India Express does not levy fuel surcharges on any of its flights.

"Air India group today announced a phased expansion of a fuel surcharge on its domestic and international routes, necessitated by the steep rise in jet fuel prices arising from the geopolitical situation in the Gulf region," the statement said.

Since early March 2026, the statement that aviation turbine fuel (ATF), which accounts for nearly 40% of an airline's operating costs, has seen significant price escalation due to supply interruptions.

"In India, this pressure is amplified by high excise duty and VAT on ATF in major metro cities such as Delhi and Mumbai, magnifying the cost impact and placing substantial strain on airline operating economics," it said.

For the avoidance of doubt, the statement said that tickets that have already been issued prior to the above times will not attract the new surcharge unless customers seek date or itinerary changes that require a recalculation of the fare.

There was no announcement regarding fuel surcharges from IndiGo, SpiceJet and Akasa Air.

(Except for the headline, Fortune India has not edited the content of this PTI report.)