New Delhi: Delayed, lost and mishandled baggage emerged as the biggest source of passenger dissatisfaction among domestic airline travellers in July, accounting for nearly one-third of all complaints received by airlines during the month, according to data released by the Directorate General of Civil Aviation (DGCA).The DGCA data showed that airlines received a total of 2,196 passenger-related complaints in July, of which 31.3 per cent, or around 687 complaints, were related to baggage issues. This made baggage-related grievances the largest complaint category, ahead of flight-related problems, which accounted for 20.6 per cent of complaints, and refund-related issues at 18.4 per cent. The figures come against the backdrop of a domestic aviation market that carried around 120 lakh passengers during July. Despite the large passenger base, complaint levels remained relatively low at 1.83 complaints per 10,000 passengers carried. Airlines resolved 2,179 complaints during the month, representing 99.2 per cent of the total complaints received.The DGCA data also highlighted differences in passenger complaint rates across airlines. IndiaOne Air reported zero complaints per 10,000 passengers carried during the month, while IndiGo recorded 0.9 complaints per 10,000 passengers and Star Air reported 1.9 complaints. At the other end of the spectrum, Alliance Air registered the highest complaint rate at 65.5 complaints per 10,000 passengers, followed by SpiceJet at 3.7 complaints per 10,000 passengers.Apart from baggage-related concerns, operational performance remained under scrutiny. The DGCA said 1.26 per cent of scheduled domestic flights were delayed by more than two hours in July. SpiceJet recorded the highest proportion of such delays at 28.37 per cent, followed by Fly91 at 2.55 per cent and Alliance Air at 1.47 per cent. The regulator noted that reactionary factors accounted for nearly 65 per cent of flight delays during the month.Flight cancellations remained relatively limited, with 0.62 per cent of scheduled domestic flights cancelled in July. Technical issues were responsible for 39.9 per cent of cancellations, while operational reasons accounted for 27.4 per cent and weather-related factors for 22.7 per cent.The traffic data also showed continued dominance by IndiGo in the domestic aviation market.The airline carried 67.4 per cent of all domestic passengers in July, up from 66.3 per cent in June. The Air India Group accounted for 24 per cent of passengers, followed by Akasa Air with 5.5 per cent and SpiceJet with 1.6 per cent.On a cumulative basis, scheduled domestic airlines carried 984.03 lakh passengers during January-July 2026, compared with 977.79 lakh passengers during the corresponding period of the previous year, registering growth of 0.64 per cent.Passenger load factors remained strong across major carriers in July, indicating sustained demand for air travel. Akasa Air reported a passenger load factor of 91.9 per cent, while Air India Group and IndiGo recorded load factors of 83.2 per cent and 82.4 per cent, respectively.The DGCA data indicates that while passenger traffic remains robust and airlines continue to maintain high seat occupancy levels, baggage handling continues to be the most significant pain point for domestic air travellers, accounting for the largest share of customer complaints received during July.