{"id":1307754,"date":"2026-03-30T09:22:39","date_gmt":"2026-03-30T03:52:39","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/trak.in\/stories\/?p=1307754"},"modified":"2026-03-30T09:22:53","modified_gmt":"2026-03-30T03:52:53","slug":"all-airlines-must-offer-60-seats-without-extra-charges-from-april-20","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/trak.in\/stories\/all-airlines-must-offer-60-seats-without-extra-charges-from-april-20\/","title":{"rendered":"All Airlines Must Offer 60% Seats Without Extra Charges From April 20"},"content":{"rendered":"\n<p>In a major relief for air travelers, India\u2019s aviation regulator <strong>Directorate General of Civil Aviation (DGCA)<\/strong> has introduced a new rule that will change how airlines charge for seat selection.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image size-large\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"1024\" height=\"556\" src=\"https:\/\/trak.in\/stories\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/03\/Screenshot-2026-03-30-at-9.19.49-AM-1024x556.png\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-1307763\" srcset=\"https:\/\/trak.in\/stories\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/03\/Screenshot-2026-03-30-at-9.19.49-AM-1024x556.png 1024w, https:\/\/trak.in\/stories\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/03\/Screenshot-2026-03-30-at-9.19.49-AM-300x163.png 300w, https:\/\/trak.in\/stories\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/03\/Screenshot-2026-03-30-at-9.19.49-AM-768x417.png 768w, https:\/\/trak.in\/stories\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/03\/Screenshot-2026-03-30-at-9.19.49-AM-1536x834.png 1536w, https:\/\/trak.in\/stories\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/03\/Screenshot-2026-03-30-at-9.19.49-AM-2048x1112.png 2048w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 1024px) 100vw, 1024px\" \/><\/figure>\n\n\n\n<hr class=\"wp-block-separator has-alpha-channel-opacity\"\/>\n\n\n\n<h3 class=\"wp-block-heading\">Change 1: 60% Seats Must Be Free<\/h3>\n\n\n\n<p>Starting <strong>April 20, 2026<\/strong>, airlines must:<\/p>\n\n\n\n<ul class=\"wp-block-list\">\n<li>Offer <strong>at least <a href=\"https:\/\/timesofindia.indiatimes.com\/business\/india-business\/airlines-must-offer-60-seats-free-from-april-20-dgca-says-amid-row-over-seat-selection-charges\/articleshow\/129882474.cms\">60% of seats on every flight free of charge<\/a><\/strong><\/li>\n\n\n\n<li>These seats can be selected <strong>without paying any extra fee<\/strong><\/li>\n<\/ul>\n\n\n\n<p>Earlier, only about <strong>20% seats were free<\/strong>, meaning most passengers had to pay for preferred seats.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<hr class=\"wp-block-separator has-alpha-channel-opacity\"\/>\n\n\n\n<h3 class=\"wp-block-heading\">Change 2: Relief from Seat Selection Charges<\/h3>\n\n\n\n<p>This move directly targets the growing issue of <strong>extra charges for seat selection<\/strong>, which had become a major complaint among flyers.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<ul class=\"wp-block-list\">\n<li>Airlines often charged <strong>\u20b9200 to \u20b91,500<\/strong> for seat selection<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li>Now, a majority of seats must be <strong>accessible without additional cost<\/strong><\/li>\n<\/ul>\n\n\n\n<p>The aim is to make ticket pricing <strong>more transparent and fair<\/strong>.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<hr class=\"wp-block-separator has-alpha-channel-opacity\"\/>\n\n\n\n<h3 class=\"wp-block-heading\">Change 3: Families Must Be Seated Together<\/h3>\n\n\n\n<p>DGCA has also directed airlines to:<\/p>\n\n\n\n<ul class=\"wp-block-list\">\n<li>Seat passengers on the <strong>same booking (PNR) together<\/strong><\/li>\n\n\n\n<li>Preferably provide <strong>adjacent seats in the same row<\/strong><\/li>\n<\/ul>\n\n\n\n<p>This addresses a common issue where families had to <strong>pay extra just to sit together<\/strong>.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<hr class=\"wp-block-separator has-alpha-channel-opacity\"\/>\n\n\n\n<h3 class=\"wp-block-heading\">Change 4: More Transparency in Charges<\/h3>\n\n\n\n<p>Airlines are now required to:<\/p>\n\n\n\n<ul class=\"wp-block-list\">\n<li>Clearly display <strong>all optional charges (seat, baggage, etc.)<\/strong><\/li>\n\n\n\n<li>Ensure passengers understand what they are paying for<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n\n\n\n<p>This is part of a broader push to reduce <strong>hidden fees in air travel<\/strong>.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<hr class=\"wp-block-separator has-alpha-channel-opacity\"\/>\n\n\n\n<h3 class=\"wp-block-heading\">Change 5: Airlines Not Happy<\/h3>\n\n\n\n<p>Airlines have raised concerns about this rule:<\/p>\n\n\n\n<ul class=\"wp-block-list\">\n<li>Seat selection fees are a key <strong>revenue source<\/strong><\/li>\n\n\n\n<li>They warn this could lead to <strong>higher ticket prices<\/strong> to offset losses<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n\n\n\n<p>So while seat selection may become cheaper, <strong>base fares could rise slightly<\/strong>.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<hr class=\"wp-block-separator has-alpha-channel-opacity\"\/>\n\n\n\n<h3 class=\"wp-block-heading\">What This Means for You<\/h3>\n\n\n\n<ul class=\"wp-block-list\">\n<li>You\u2019ll likely <strong>not need to pay extra for most seats<\/strong><\/li>\n\n\n\n<li>Families and groups can <strong>sit together without additional cost<\/strong><\/li>\n\n\n\n<li>But ticket prices may become <strong>slightly higher overall<\/strong><\/li>\n<\/ul>\n\n\n\n<hr class=\"wp-block-separator has-alpha-channel-opacity\"\/>\n\n\n\n<h3 class=\"wp-block-heading\">Bigger Picture: End of Hidden Airline Fees?<\/h3>\n\n\n\n<p>This move signals a clear shift toward:<\/p>\n\n\n\n<ul class=\"wp-block-list\">\n<li><strong>Passenger-first policies<\/strong><\/li>\n\n\n\n<li>Reducing \u201cunbundled\u201d charges<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li>Making air travel <strong>more transparent and predictable<\/strong><\/li>\n<\/ul>\n\n\n\n<p><\/p>\n\n\n\n<p><a href=\"https:\/\/www.ndtv.com\/video\/see-how-much-we-are-sweating-air-india-passenger-says-no-ac-inside-aircraft-in-delhi-941110\">Image Source<\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>In a major relief for air travelers, India\u2019s aviation regulator Directorate General of Civil Aviation (DGCA) has introduced a new rule that will change how airlines charge for seat selection. Change 1: 60% Seats Must Be Free Starting April 20, 2026, airlines must: Earlier, only about 20% seats were free, meaning most passengers had to [&hellip;]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":30,"featured_media":1307763,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_acf_changed":false,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paid_content":false,"footnotes":""},"categories":[21],"tags":[989,9657],"class_list":["post-1307754","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-business","tag-airlines","tag-seats"],"acf":[],"yoast_head":"<!-- This site is optimized with the Yoast SEO plugin v25.9 - https:\/\/yoast.com\/wordpress\/plugins\/seo\/ -->\n<title>All Airlines Must Offer 60% Seats Without Extra Charges From April 20 - Trak.in - Indian Business of Tech, Mobile &amp; Startups<\/title>\n<meta name=\"robots\" content=\"index, follow, max-snippet:-1, max-image-preview:large, max-video-preview:-1\" \/>\n<link rel=\"canonical\" href=\"https:\/\/trak.in\/stories\/all-airlines-must-offer-60-seats-without-extra-charges-from-april-20\/\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:locale\" content=\"en_US\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:type\" content=\"article\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:title\" content=\"All Airlines Must Offer 60% Seats Without Extra Charges From April 20 - Trak.in - Indian Business of Tech, Mobile &amp; Startups\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:description\" content=\"In a major relief for air travelers, India\u2019s aviation regulator Directorate General of Civil Aviation (DGCA) has introduced a new rule that will change how airlines charge for seat selection. 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