Flying becoming unaffordable: Twitter (X) explodes as Bengaluru flight costs double in few years

A young woman’s post on skyrocketing airfares has gone viral and sparked a broader conversation online about India’s rising cost of domestic travel. Khushboo Verma, a software professional, took to X (formerly Twitter) to share her shock over how much a one-way flight from Delhi to Bengaluru now costs.

She wrote: “When I moved from Delhi to Bengaluru in 2022, my flight ticket costed around Rs 3.5k. Today, the same one-way route is costing me Rs 8.5K, even if I book 2 weeks in advance. What is this inflation? And why is no one doing anything about it? How are people affording it?”

Her tweet quickly struck a chord with netizens, many of whom echoed her frustration, calling out what they described as ‘unreasonable fare hikes’ and the ‘lack of affordable options’ for air travel.

Social Media Joins In:

“Everything’s become unaffordable in the last few years,” shared a user.

Likewise, another user shared, “Flying is no longer a convenience—it’s become a luxury again.”

Her post triggered a wave of replies. Some blamed the hike on inflation and the global spike in fuel prices. Others pointed fingers at the near-monopoly of a few airlines, especially after several low-cost carriers shut down or scaled back.

“I’m seeing this everywhere – even buses and trains are packed because people can’t afford flights anymore,” said another.

What Data Says?

According to aviation data and industry experts, domestic airfares in India have surged between 40% and 45% over the past two years on popular routes like Delhi–Bengaluru, Mumbai–Kolkata, and Hyderabad–Chennai.

Despite the surge, India’s airfares are still among the lowest globally on a cost-per-kilometre basis, but the increase has sharply outpaced consumer income and general inflation.