23 Oct 2025

The Evolution of Market Structure in Indian Aviation (2001-2025): An Analysis of Dominance, Decline, and Duopoly

Why this whitepaper matters

India’s airline industry has gone from fragmentation to a hardening near-duopoly. Our new whitepaper traces the full arc, liberalisation, LCC rise, crises, consolidation, and shows how scale, operational discipline, and brand execution now decide who thrives and who merely survives. Expect a clear, data-rich narrative that decodes what happened, why it happened, and what comes next.

About the author

Dr. Alok Anand, CEO & Chairman of Acumen Aviation, draws on over two decades of leadership across aircraft asset management, advisory and digital innovation to present an insider’s strategic view of the market’s consolidation, anchored in facts, timelines and on-fleet realities.

What you’ll learn in 15 minutes

1. The new market reality: How IndiGo and the Air India Group together captured 90%+ of domestic share, and what that concentration means for pricing power, service quality and network reach.

2. Profitability polarisation: Why IndiGo’s FY25 profit (~₹7,258 crore) co-exists with Air India Group’s FY25 loss (~₹10,859 crore) at a similar revenue scale, and the operational levers behind each outcome.

3. Fleet strategy = future share: Record orderbooks (1,500+ aircraft across leaders) as the real moat; how OEM bottlenecks and delivery timelines are now competitive variables.

4. Shock absorbers: COVID-19, Jet’s collapse, pilot availability and safety audits, how exogenous shocks accelerated an end-game few predicted a decade ago.

5. Brand as a balance-sheet asset: Why punctuality, reliability and trust now convert directly into cashflows, and how fragile that advantage can be.

Who should read this whitepaper

1. Aircraft lessors & investors: To align lease terms, redelivery timing and orderbook exposure with the new concentration risk.

2. Airline C-suite & strategy teams: To benchmark utilisation discipline, fleet planning and brand promises against the current winners.

3. Banks & capital providers: To underwrite credit with a clearer view of market power, cost curves and OEM delivery risk.

4. OEMs & suppliers: To calibrate slot allocation, MRO capacity and parts pipelines to India’s demand profile.

5. Regulators & policy leaders: To anticipate consumer outcomes, network connectivity and competition guardrails in a concentrated market.

What you’ll take away

1. A succinct, evidence-based narrative you can brief to boards and investment committees.

2. Two clean, presentation-ready charts (fleet and market share) to ground discussions.

3. A forward view of how scale, discipline and delivery slots will shape the next five years.

About Acumen Aviation

Founded in 2009 and headquartered in Dublin, Acumen Aviation is a global leader in aviation consultancy, advisory, and asset management. With offices in India, China, and the USA, Acumen delivers clarity and competitive advantage across the aircraft lifecycle through consultancy, asset management, and digital platforms like SPARTA.

Have questions? Connect with us at connect@acumen.aero to learn more.