Telling the middle class to swap Bali for Kashmir sounds noble. But when a Dehradun flight costs as much as a Colombo holiday, patriotism alone won't fix the math.
No one in European aviation talks more than Michael O'Leary, and few are better placed to call what's coming. His earnings Q&A is one of the most candid industry insights you'll get this quarter.
Now, before we start linking this to Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s appeal to avoid foreign travel, it’s worth remembering that Air India had been warning about rising fuel costs and airspace disruptions for weeks before that call was made.
In one corner stands India’s most influential political leader appealing for no foreign travel. In the other, a middle class obsessed with global holidays, luxury getaways, and Instagram-worthy weddings abroad. The industry is caught in the middle.
IHCL survived the Iran war with its record run intact, but the episode was a sharp reminder that even India's biggest hotel company can't fully insulate itself from a war it has nothing to do with.