IndiGo, which faced an operational meltdown in December last year, reported a profit of INR 549.8 crores in Q3-FY26. The profit, despite the meltdown, could have been higher with the airline categorising INR 1546.5 crore as exceptional costs, which includes costs related to operational disruption as well as the changed labor codes. The foreign exchange loss stood at INR 1113.4 crore. IndiGo flew 123.7 million passengers in calendar year 2025, a 9% increase over the previous year and a new record for IndiGo. On a year on year basis, the drop in profit is 78% with Q3-FY25 seeing a profit of INR 2448.8 crore.
IndiGo reported a revenue from operations of INR 23471.9 crores, which is the highest in history of the airline.
The airline reported an increase of 11.2% in Capacity by ASK, while its total income grew 6.7% on a year on year basis. The airline saw a decrease in RASK by 4.5% while its total expenses increased by 9.6%. The airline has said that its Profit After Tax (PAT) would have been INR 3130 crores, had it not been for the exceptional items or forex. However, while the labor code is exceptional and one time, forex is now a reality which IndiGo cannot avoid going forward. The airline is seeing a drop in yield as well as RASK, which can also be attributed to the newly launched widebody operations.
Fleet increase
The airline had a fleet of 440 aircraft at the end of December. This includes 16 wet/damp leased planes, an increase of 8 planes over the end of previous quarter. On its own, the fleet saw an increase of 1 XLR and 15 A321neo, while one ATR left the fleet. The airline is slowly shifting from operating lease to finance lease and owned planes as it helps with lowering its outgo in USD, especially important currently since the rupee is sliding as compared to the dollar.
What next?
IndiGo will induct the sixth and last 787-9 Dreamliner from Norse Atlantic shortly. It will also let go of the Turkish Airlines B777s with the route replaced by the next two XLRs which IndiGo is expected to induct over the next two months. How the airline navigates the regulatory framework in view of the current situation which it finds itself into will also be observed closely. The airline decided to have a higher percentage of its capacity on international routes but a rupee which is sliding will put pressure on Indians traveling abroad and India is yet to get back to pre-COVID numbers for Foreign Tourist Arrivals, making international operations challenging for IndiGo. Between the gains coming from Sale and Leaseback and longer term rupee depreciation impact, the airline seems to have gone towards a longer term focus on having aircraft on books with owned or financed lease models.
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