As India’s travel ecosystem closes another year of rapid recalibration, the role of the General Sales Agent has emerged as a critical stabilising force connecting global airlines and cruise lines with a fragmented yet opportunity-rich Indian market. In conversation with TTJ, Subhash Goyal, Chairman, STIC Travel Group, one of India’s most established and diversified GSA organisations, offers a grounded, trade-first assessment of the forces that will shape India’s travel and aviation story in the year ahead.
With the recovery of the airline industry, route expansion, and evolving distribution models, GSAs are playing a more strategic role than ever before. Goyal observes, “With 52 years in the industry, we now represent 13 international airlines and eight cruise lines, including Disney Cruises. As a 100 per cent B2B company, we work exclusively through travel agents and provide trip cancellation insurance to fully protect travellers, especially for cruises and visa-related cancellations.”
STIC Travel’s Burgeoning Portfolio
Goyal says STIC’s 2025 performance indicates a broad-based recovery, with each airline growing at its own pace. “United Airlines remains a long-standing partner, and Myanmar International Airlines is starting flights to Mumbai, already operating in Delhi, Kolkata and Chennai. While SriLankan Airlines, Ethiopian, and Croatia Airlines continue to perform steadily. Royal Jordanian is starting flights to Delhi from 15 March this year. Our other Royal Brunei Airlines flights have already started operations recently from Chennai, reflecting strong growth. Royal Brunei offers strong connectivity via Brunei to the Philippines, Japan, Australia, and select cities in China. Brunei stands out as a compelling destination in its own right, offering excellent value for money. The expected restart of Air China and continued representation of Russia’s Nordwind Airlines signal confidence in emerging and recovering markets,” he adds.
Cruising is one of India’s fastest-growing travel segments, and Goyal calls it ‘India’s latest travel obsession’. STIC represents Albatross Cruises for polar expeditions, El Rosa River Cruises across Europe, Celestyal Cruises in the Middle East and Greek Islands, Variety Cruises in Africa and Greece, and Holland America Cruise Lines, known for Alaska and round-the-world itineraries. In the luxury segment, the portfolio includes Windstar Cruises, which, unlike larger cruise liners following fixed routes, can access nearby destinations and sail deep into remote ports. With just 100 cabins, Windstar delivers an intimate, super-luxury small-ship experience to remote ports. The portfolio also features Ponant, the French ultra-luxury cruise line renowned for its expertise in polar expeditions.” Travel agents are increasingly selling cruises, as all cruises are available to them with a 10 per cent commission. STIC adapts its approach and tailors its services to meet the needs of its principals.
Beyond cruising, Goyal adds that STIC also represents the world’s largest rent-a-car brands, namely Alamo, National, and Enterprise, holding about 70 per cent global market share, enabling travel agents to generate additional revenue through limousine and car rental services.
Need For More Aviation Hubs
He believes India must develop more international aviation hubs, drawing parallels with the United States, where travellers can fly directly into multiple cities across each state. Citing his visit to Bhopal for the IATO convention, he points to the irony of a fully built international terminal lying unused, reinforcing his view that every state should have at least one operational international airport.
He further stresses that airports must actively attract airlines, as the lack of direct international flights limits business and cultural exchange. “Forcing travellers to transit through Delhi in order to reach Srinagar or Khajuraho is inefficient, and opening more states to international flights is absolutely critical,” he says.
Highlighting India’s aviation potential, he adds, “With 80 new airports already built and the capacity to support at least 300 more nationwide, India’s aviation sector is expanding rapidly. The Ministry has also indicated scope for at least five additional domestic airlines.”
Recent Airline Crisis
To safeguard the long-term viability of India’s domestic airlines, particularly in the wake of the recent IndiGo crisis, Goyal has written to the Ministry with a set of concrete, consumer-focused recommendations aimed at ensuring balance in the aviation ecosystem.
He explains, “First, in an Aircraft on Ground (AOG) situation, tickets should be transferable to other airlines at face value, with accounts settled through the IATA clearing house, without passengers being forced to buy new tickets at exorbitant prices.” He adds that while airline profitability is essential, it cannot come at the cost of unchecked pricing. “Second, while airlines should earn healthy margins, fares must be capped. For instance, if the Delhi to Mumbai direct operating cost (DOC) is 4,000, fares can reasonably allow a 200 to 300 per cent margin, but fares then should be capped between 8,000 and 20,000 rather than surging to 70,000 or 1,00000 as seen during the Kumbh Mela, the Pahalgam attack, and the IndiGo disruption. If taxi fares can be regulated, so can airline fares.”
Drawing attention to existing policy frameworks, he points out that the UDAN scheme already demonstrates how regulation and incentives can work in tandem. The UDAN scheme balances subsidies for Tier 2 and 3 cities to promote travel, tourism and connectivity to these cities.
Subhash further recommends, “Airlines should only file schedules which they can operate based on available crew strength, so that similar situations like the Indigo crisis do not arise.” Emphasising consumer protection and industry accountability, he adds, “To safeguard the consumer, tour operators and travel agents from the sudden collapse of airlines like Kingfisher, Jet Airways, Sahara, GoAir, etc. I strongly recommend that with every ticket that is sold, mandatory insurance should be included.”
Beyond operational and regulatory reforms, he stresses the urgent need to address structural cost pressures. To ensure that no airline fails, it is important that Aviation Turbine Fuel (ATF), which is 40-50 per cent of DOC, should be reduced, and taxes on it should not be more than 1 per cent. He also underlines the role airports must play in easing the burden on airlines. In order to make Indian airports attractive, they should reduce landing, parking, ground handling and other charges from airlines.
Finally, he proposes an alternative revenue model to improve airport profitability without pushing costs back onto airlines or passengers. Every airport should have a shopping complex attached to it, which will make the airports profitable without increasing the cost of operations of the airlines.
Message to the Trade
In summary, Goyal notes that STIC has continually adapted to market shifts. “When airline commissions dropped to zero, we diversified into cruises and now represent eight cruise lines. We have since expanded into wholesale destination packages, flight schools, insurance, and MICE, primarily to support small and mid-sized agents without proprietary products,” he says.
Emphasising adaptability, he adds, “Necessity is the mother of invention. For 2026, travel businesses must leverage technology and AI to improve efficiency and service, diversify their offerings, and maintain a balanced product mix across domestic, inbound, and outbound segments.”
