SpiceJet to fire 20% workforce:Senior officers devoid of salary since January 2026

The country’s private airline SpiceJet is going through a serious crisis. With declining operational capacity, the company has decided to reduce 20% of its staff, which may include sending more than 500 employees on unpaid leave. The airline has 6,800 employees. It has only 13 aircraft left, which include 10 Boeing and 3 Q400. Additionally, 14 aircraft are operating on wet-lease (with crew). Senior officers have not received salaries since January and other employees are receiving their salaries with a delay of 2-3 months. The company has outstanding dues of more than 100 crore rupees in GST, TDS and PF. TDS has not been deposited since April 2025 and GST for 5 months. Fell behind Akasa in market share The airline has terminated the three-month notice period of dozens of engineers who had resigned. Following the March 31 order, these employees have been asked to leave their jobs immediately. SpiceJet’s share in the domestic market has fallen to just 3.9%. In comparison, the newer airline Akasa has a 4.9% share with 37 aircraft and 5,000 employees. Former employees are also expressing dissatisfaction over not receiving their full and final dues. Pilot Salary Reduced, Will Get 21 Days of Work A new rule has come for pilots. They will have to work 21 days and take 9 days off. This will reduce the captains’ monthly salary from ₹7.5 lakh to ₹6 lakh. Airline’s Loss Increased to ₹621 Crore in July-September Quarter Low-cost airline SpiceJet’s consolidated net loss in the July-September quarter (Q2FY26) increased by 35% year-on-year to ₹621 crore. It was ₹458 crore in the same quarter last year. The company’s operational revenue also declined by 13% to ₹792 crore. It was ₹915 crore in the same quarter last year. Three reasons for SpiceJet’s increased losses Increase in operating costs: Fleet revival means repairing old planessuch as fixing engines, replacing parts. SpiceJet kept several planes grounded (flights suspended) in Q2, with expenses reaching up to ₹297 crore. Expansion costs (adding new flights) also increased, as money was spent on buying or leasing new planes. This led to total operating costs (running expenses) increasing by 13% YoY. The company says this is short-term pain, but in the long run the fleet will become stronger. Lean Demand Low, Passenger Count Decreased in Monsoon: Lean demand means reduced travel during the monsoon season (July-September). During this time, people travel less because of rains and holiday season. SpiceJet’s revenue was 792 crore rupees, which is 13% lower than last year’s 915 crore. QoQ it fell 29%, because demand was higher in Q1. Passenger load factor remained at 84.3%, but total ticket sales decreased. This led to reduced earnings and increased losses. The company said there will be improvement from Q3 during the festive season. Supply Chain Problems: Supply chain problems mean shortage of parts and engines. Many of SpiceJet’s planes remained grounded because there were delays in engine overhaul (repairs). Parts arrived late due to global supply chain issues (such as shipment delays). This resulted in fewer flights operating and increased operational expenses. The operating loss of 297 crore in Q2 came from this. The company said the fleet will be ready in Q3, but currently this remains a major cause of losses. SpiceJet is India’s Low-Cost Airline SpiceJet is India’s low cost airline, which connects the far corners of the country. The company operates approximately 250 flights daily to 48 destinations within India and international destinations. SpiceJet’s fleet includes Boeing 737 MAX, Boeing 700 and Q400. The SpiceJet brand was launched in 2004, but its Air Operator Certificate (AOC) is from 1993. At that time, an air taxi company owned by SK Modi had partnered with German airline Lufthansa. Its operations were shut down in 1996. In 2004, entrepreneur Ajay Singh planned to create India’s low cost airline SpiceJet. SpiceJet’s first flight departed on May 24, 2005 from New Delhi (DEL) to Mumbai (BOM) using a leased Boeing 737-800.