Bharatiya Vayuyan Niyam 2026: Airlines Must Itemise Fares From 1 January

The Civil Aviation Ministry notified the Bharatiya Vayuyan Niyam, 2026 in the Gazette of India on Saturday, 31 October, replacing the Aircraft Rules, 1937 with effect from 1 January 2027. The rules, framed under the Bharatiya Vayuyan Adhiniyam, 2024, require every airline to show passengers the total fare payable with a separate break-up, and let the Centre step in on fares in an “extraordinary situation”, according to reporting by Business Standard and The Week.

Fare Break-Up at Booking and on the Ticket

From January, airlines must publish their tariffs on their websites or other digital platforms and show the total amount payable at the time of booking and on the ticket. The total must list the base fare, taxes, fees, cancellation charges and refund conditions separately. Airlines will also have to set fares on factors such as operating costs and submit them to the Directorate General of Civil Aviation (DGCA) at set intervals.

Centre Keeps a Power to Direct Airlines

The government can issue written directions on fares in the public interest if it decides an extraordinary situation has arisen. The rules do not define the term, according to the reports. The DGCA will monitor the tariffs of scheduled Indian airlines. Fares themselves remain deregulated, as they have been since 1994, so airlines still decide their own prices.

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The rules cover far more than fares. They deal with aircraft registration, manufacturing, safety certification, maintenance, flight operations, licensing of pilots, maintenance engineers and air traffic controllers, aerodrome operations, and limits on flight duty and rest periods for crew. Business Standard reported that the broad framework is largely similar to the old rules and that many existing requirements have been kept.

Festival Fares and the Court Question

Airfares have been in court this year. IPB News reported earlier that the Centre told the Supreme Court the airfare pricing rules had been finalised. On 2 November the court refused an urgent hearing on a plea about steep festival fares, as IPB News covered in its report on the Supreme Court’s refusal of urgent hearing on a fare cap plea. The new rules do not cap fares.

Rules Take Effect on 1 January 2027

The rules come into force on 1 January 2027. What counts as an extraordinary situation, and how the DGCA will use the cost data airlines submit, will only become clear once the rules are in use. More coverage is in Daily Updates.

Source: Based on reporting by Business Standard, The Week and The Tribune (PTI).

Image: Nitin SJ Asariparambil / The Week.