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Revolutionized by liberalization, the aviation sector in India has been marked by fast-paced change in the past few years. From being a service that few could afford, the sector has now graduated to being a fiercely competitive industry with the presence of a number of private and public airlines and several consumer-oriented offerings.

The market was galvanized a couple of years ago by the introduction of lower price tags which ensured that people could travel at the fraction of the original price of air travel. It was spurred further by the entry of Air Deccan, India's first budget airline, which offered hard-to-believe tariffs. This was the trigger point for the sector to move from having simple economy, business and first class fares, to multiple slab tariffs such as apex fares, internet auctions, special discounts, bulk purchases and last day fares. Some of the tariffs offered are so low that they have brought airline fares neck-to-neck with upper class railway fares. Little wonder then that the consumer prefers air travel to the railways.

The fare reduction has given the sector a huge boost, with the number of domestic air travelers growing a massive 12.15 per cent in 2003-04 to 15.7 million from 14 million in 2002-03. The growth is much higher than the 8.5 per cent growth passenger traffic saw in 2002-03, as per data released by the Director General of Civil Aviation (DGCA). The upward trend is expected to continue this year and grow over 20 per cent in 2004-05.

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