Akasa Air, India’s third largest airline, is tapping into the month-long demand for Hajj travel to deploy its aircraft capacity left underutilized after services to parts of West Asia were scaled back due to the ongoing war in the region, according to a person aware of the development.
Approximately five to six airplanes were used on the West Asia route, which are now being used majorly for Hajj travel," said the person quoted above, requesting anonymity as this plan is part of business strategy.
Flights to and from Doha, Riyadh and Kuwait have been suspended until 30 April, according to the airline’s 21 April post on X. While it continues to operate flights to Jeddah in Saudi Arabia—the main gateway for pilgrims going to Mecca—from Ahmedabad, Bengaluru, Mumbai, Kochi and Kozhikode, Akasa is evaluating resumption of flights to Abu Dhabi, the post said.
Akasa Air did not respond to Mint’s queries on aircraft utilization, Hajj travel and the impact of the West Asia crisis.
The airline has inducted eight new aircraft in 2026, taking the fleet size to 38. However, one of them is is going through maintenance and engineering after a collision at Delhi's Indira Gandhi International Airport with a SpiceJet plane on 16 April.
Experts believe this diversion of idle aircraft can be a temporary fix in the situation, but is not a sustainable option.
Airlines deploying their underutilized aircraft for Hajj travel is a “practical and sensible move” amid the West Asia disruption, but it is only a short-term fix, said Ashish Chhawchharia, partner and aviation industry leader at Grant Thornton Bharat.
“While Hajj traffic is huge and provides a strong, concentrated burst of demand, it is limited to a short window of around four to six weeks. That makes it a useful but temporary cushion. Such deployments help mitigate immediate losses, but they are unlikely to fully offset the sustained impact of reduced West Asia operations,” he said.
Hajj 2026 travel to Mecca in Saudi Arabia begins in April, with the first flights carrying pilgrims having landed in Jeddah on 18 April. This marks the start of the arrival window, which will continue until May 21, ahead of the main rituals set for May 25-29.
A more viable fix for airlines would be to explore short-term ‘wet lease’ arrangements for 6-12 months, deploying surplus aircraft to markets that are not affected by the disruption to maintain utilization and generate some revenue, he said. A wet lease agreement is one in which an airline leases its aircraft with crew, maintenance and insurance to another carrier.
New directors
On the management side, India’s youngest airline is set to induct two new directors to its board, representing key investors Premji Invest and listed asset manager 360 ONE Asset.
Premji Invest and 360 ONE Asset have nominated Manoj Jaiswal and Umesh Devendrakumar Agrawal, respectively, to the board of Akasa Air, said the person quoted above.
While the board has approved Agrawal’s appointment as a non-executive nominee director, subject to shareholder approval as per a December resolution filed with the corporate affairs ministry, Jaiswal’s induction remains pending government security clearance and is expected to be finalized later this month.
“All requisite approvals and clearances have been received for the induction of the new board members,” said an Akasa Air spokesperson in response to Mint’s queries on the new board members.
Premji Invest and 360 declined to comment on these nominations.
Akasa had raised ₹1,200 crore from Bengaluru-based billionaires Azim Premji and Ranjan Pai and Mumbai-based listed wealth management firm 360 One Asset last year.
The fresh capital was earmarked for Akasa’s expansion plans, including scaling up operations, investing in technology and strengthening customer experience, as it targets a place among the world’s top 30 airlines by the end of the decade.
Akasa, which made its debut in 2022, ended FY25 with revenue of ₹4,582.72 crore and a loss of ₹1,983.4 crore. Backed by the late Rakesh Jhunjhunwala’s family and fresh capital raised in August 2025, the airline holds 4.7% of the domestic market.
As of 30 June 2025, members and trusts of the Jhunjhunwala family collectively held 44.4%, while founder and chief executive Vinay Dube owned 16.1%.
