IndiGo: Strong Revenue, Weaker Profits

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The Delhi-based low-cost airline, IndiGo, reported a net profit of Rs 5.49 billion for the quarter ended December 31 last year, compared with Rs 24.48 billion during the same period last year.

In a statement to the Bombay Stock Exchange, the listed airline said that the net profit excludes the impact of Rs 9.69 billion from exceptional items related to the implementation of new labour laws and another Rs 5.77 billion from exceptional items related to operational disruptions.

These two exceptional items relate to the Indian Directorate General of Civil Aviation implementing new Flight Duty Time Limitation rules for cockpit crew, which came into effect late last year. IndiGo was short of pilots, leading to flight disruptions between December 3 and December 5 last year. The disruptions affected over 300,000 passengers, with more than 2500 flights cancelled and over 1800 delayed during that period. Earlier this month, the DGCA fined IndiGo a record Rs 2.22 billion ($24.4 million) for the incident.

The airline’s net profit excluding the impact of exceptional items and forex declined 18.6 percent to Rs 31.30 billion compared to the net profit excluding the impact of exceptional items and forex of Rs 38.46 billion.

The statement adds that on a consolidated year-on-year basis, Indian low-cost airline capacity increased by 11.2 percent to 45.4 billion, while revenue from operations rose 6.2 percent to Rs 234.71 billion.

Similarly, EBITDAR excluding forex impact of Rs 70.434 billion (30 percent EBITDAR margin), compared to EBITDAR excluding forex impact of Rs 74.56 billion (33.7 percent EBITDAR margin). EBITDAR stands for Earnings Before Interest, Taxes, Depreciation, Amortization, and restructuring or rent costs.

This is a financial metric showing core operational profitability by adding back financing, taxes, non-cash charges, and fixed property/restructuring expenses to net income, useful for comparing companies with different lease structures, like hotels or airlines

Mr. Pieter Elbers, Chief Executive Officer, IndiGo, felt that despite these operational disruptions, IndiGo delivered a topline of around Rs 245 billion rupees in the December quarter, reflecting a growth of around 7 percent with a reported profit of around Rs 5 billion and an underlying profit excluding exceptional items and forex of Rs 31 billion. “Our long-term fundamentals remain strong, backed by our expanding fleet, growing domestic and international network,” he added.

The airline reported total revenues of Rs 245.40 billion, up from Rs 229.92 billion previously, an increase of 6.7 percent over the same period last year. Similarly, for the latest quarter, IndiGo reported passenger ticket revenues at 204.64 billion, an increase of 6.2 percent, while ancillary revenues stood at Rs 24.46 billion, an increase of 13.6 percent as compared to the same period previously.

Looking ahead to future capacity growth, the airline said that fourth-quarter fiscal year 2026 capacity, measured in ASKs, is expected to grow around 10 percent compared to the fourth quarter of fiscal year 2025.