In a big relief to Indian travellers planning overseas travel this summer, the domestic carriers are ramping up capacity from May onwards on international routes after it was drastically impacted due to the West Asia conflict.

Both IndiGo and Air India Express have increased the seat capacity by 35% over April 2026 to cater to holiday travel demand. India's leading airlines are set to restore full-scale operations at Hamad International Airport (DOH) starting today, May 1.    

However, the seat availability in May 2026 is way less than May 2025, owing to the Gulf conflict impacting the summer. It's better than April 2026, which was the worst month for domestic carriers in terms of impact on traffic due to the continuing conflict.

According to the data by OAG, an international aviation analytics firm, IndiGo's international seats improved by nearly 200,000 in May 2026 over April. The country’s largest airline by network has only 7% less seat availability in May 2026 over May 2025, showing its path to network recovery. The difference in April 2026 over April 2025 was over 30%.

Air India Express, which caters to the Middle East network, has also improved in terms of seat availability on the overseas sector, with 35% more seats in May over April this year. However, it is still over 50% less than the seat availability in May 2025, reflecting the continued impact of airspace restrictions in the Middle East.

The worst impacted in SpiceJet is adding only 3% more seats in May over April this year, and is 60% less than the May 2025. SpiceJet profits have tanked with pending salaries of staff for over 2-3 months.

Air India has increased seats this summer in May by nearly 4% over April, but is less 19% compared to May 2025.        

As part of their strategy, domestic carriers are also looking at other international sectors with continuous trouble in the Gulf. However, Doha connectivity is set to resume in May.

"Indian carriers plan to resume operations at Hamad International Airport, Doha, as flight operations continue to expand. Air India, Air India Express and Indigo plan to resume their flight services between Doha and various destinations in India starting 1 May 2026," posted Embassy of India Doha, Qatar on X.

The Embassy emphasised that this expansion is not an isolated effort but a synchronised move between international aviation bodies.

While flights resume May 1, the Embassy warns that schedules remain "subject to coordination with relevant authorities," reflecting the reality that in the 2026 Middle East, peace is still a day-to-day negotiation.

Published on: Apr 30, 2026 4:24 PM IST