InterGlobe Aviation management has communicated to investors that it is not prepared to provide financial guidance for FY2027, citing ongoing planning processes that remain incomplete.

Management Position on FY2027 Projections

During a recent conference call, the airline's management clearly stated their position regarding future guidance. The company emphasized that it would be premature to provide projected growth or impact numbers for the FY2027 period.

Key Planning Areas Under Development

The management highlighted two critical areas where planning remains ongoing:

Strategic Planning Timeline

The airline's cautious approach reflects the complexity involved in long-term aviation planning. Management indicated that both summer schedule planning and the refinement of cost per available seat kilometer (CASK) numbers are essential components that need completion before any meaningful projections can be shared with stakeholders.

This conservative stance suggests that InterGlobe Aviation is prioritizing accuracy and thoroughness in its planning process over providing preliminary estimates that may require significant revisions later.

InterGlobe Aviation , which operates India's largest carrier IndiGo, reported a sharp decline in quarterly performance as operational disruptions and regulatory challenges severely impacted profitability. The airline's consolidated profit dropped 78% year-on-year to ₹549 crore for the third quarter of fiscal year 2026, marking its weakest performance in four years.

Financial Performance Overview

The significant profit decline was primarily attributed to exceptional costs totaling ₹1,546.5 crore, stemming from the implementation of new labour codes and compensation payments to passengers during December's operational disruptions.

Operational Disruptions and Regulatory Impact

IndiGo faced severe operational challenges in December, leading to significant passenger inconvenience and regulatory intervention. The civil aviation regulator temporarily curbed the airline's flight operations in the first week of December, reducing daily domestic flight departures by 10% to approximately 2,000 flights per day.

The disruptions were attributed to poor planning by the airline to comply with new rules restricting the number of flights pilots could operate at night, which came into effect from November 1.

Revised Growth Outlook

Due to the operational constraints, IndiGo has significantly scaled back its near-term growth expectations. The company now expects available seat km growth in "single digits," a substantial reduction from the previously guided "high teens" growth outlined at the end of the second quarter.

CEO Pieter Elbers acknowledged the impact during a post-earnings call, stating that operations have stabilized in January and are expected to remain stable in February. CFO Gaurav Negi indicated that passenger revenue growth in the March quarter is expected to remain in the "mid to single digits" range.

Market Response and Analyst Views

Despite the challenging results, analysts viewed the performance as largely in line with expectations. Gagan Dixit from Elara Securities noted that the numbers were "better than expected for the December quarter" with no long-term impact on operational metrics. Karan Khanna from Ambit Capital highlighted that results were largely aligned with street expectations, excluding one-time exceptional items.

Shares of InterGlobe Aviation ended 1.15% higher on the BSE on Thursday, outperforming the Sensex which gained 0.49% to close at 82,307.3 points.

Additional Cost Pressures

Beyond exceptional costs, the airline faced a 17% sequential rise in fuel costs during the December quarter. Fuel typically accounts for approximately one-third of total airline operating costs, adding further pressure to profitability during an already challenging period.