SPICEJET, INDIGO IMPOSE FUEL SURCHARGE

No frills airlines SpiceJet and IndiGo today merged fuel surcharge with the base fares, saying it would simplify the prevailing fare structure. Before this, an air ticket of domestic airlines used to have different components, separately showing base fare and fuel surcharge, apart from charges like user development fees and taxes which go to the airport operator and the government. "Ticket pricing and fare displays have been made simpler and more transparent by removal of the fuel surcharge add-on from all of its pricing, and consolidating it as part of the base fare. Going forward, the fare displayed will be what you see is what you pay," SpiceJet said in a statement. It said the decision has already been communicated to the aviation regulator DGCA. "We have been considering this proposal of offering consolidated price to customers for some time now. The standard way of displaying fares practiced by airlines in the country is often confusing to customers. We hope with this initiative, customers will be better informed now," SpiceJet's chief commercial officer Kaneswaran Avili said. The airline claimed it was the first Indian airline to implement such an initiative aimed at making air travel and pricing more consumer friendly and transparent. However, the website of IndiGo also showed the carrier combining the base fare with fuel surcharge, besides service tax, development fees, passenger service fees and user development fees. GoAir and Air India were still showing fuel surcharge as separate components of the ticket price.