Due to the high cost of aviation and operating an airline, many smaller countries have a very limited market of carriers.

Airlines that rely primarily on just one or two airlines include Ethiopia with Ethiopian Airlines, Canada with Air Canada and WestJet, and Australia with Qantas Airways and Virgin Australia. While these countries all have other smaller carriers, one or two main airlines control the majority of the route network.

Home to over 1.45 billion people, India has surpassed China as the most populous country in the world in 2025 but still holds a decades-old airline duopoly with flag carrier Air India and low-cost airline IndiGo.

According to local statistics, these two airlines control more than 90% of India’s domestic market, The Economic Times reports, with the latter having a share of approximately 65%.

India to get three new airlines: Shankh Air, alhindair, and FlyExpress

While airlines like Akasa Air and SpiceJet also run flights, the monopoly may soon be broken up further with India’s Ministry of Civil Aviation granting initial approval to three new airlines.

Shankh Air, the planned airline for the Uttar Pradesh state, is expected to launch in the first quarter of 2026 with five Airbus A320 planes purchased from Bulgaria.

FlyExpress, another new carrier to be based in Hydarabad, has also been granted a No Objection Certificates (NOC) to begin flights in 2026. It is envisioned as a low-cost airline connecting regional cities to major hubs in southern and central India.

Related: This is why a major airline is investing so much in India

Backed by the Dubai-based Alhind Group, alhindair also plans to launch flights out of the southern city of Kerala both domestically within India and to several destinations in the Middle East.

In the last five years, India has emerged as one of the main sources of international tourism to the United Arab Emirates.

The fast-tracking of approval for new airlines comes amid a string of IndiGo flight disruptions.

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India “amongst the fastest-growing aviation markets in the world”

“It has been the endeavour of the ministry to encourage more airlines in Indian aviation, which is amongst the fastest-growing aviation markets in the world,” Indian Federal Minister of Civil Aviation Ram Mohan Naidu Kinjarapu wrote in an X (formerly Twitter) post announcing that new airlines would soon receive approval.

While plans to launch these airlines by their founders and financial backers date back several years, the fast-tracking of regulatory approvals before the end of 2025 comes amid a string of flight cancellations at IndiGo.

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After the Indian government implemented new rules on working hours to limit pilot fatigue, according to Al Jazeera, the country’s second-largest airline was largely caught unprepared, despite several rollout stages.

Between Dec. 2 and 9, the airline canceled over 4,000 flights in a situation that left thousands of travelers stranded in different parts of the country. The shutdown drew attention to the low market competition and the need to diversify the number of airlines operating flights.

With the three new airlines securing the initial step in regulatory approval to launch, the next steps are to secure the aircraft and pass safety audits to obtain the final Air Operator’s Certificate (AOC) and begin selling flights to passengers.

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