Air passengers flying to the Gulf and some other regions could expect better deals with budget airline IndiGo gearing up to start its low-fare international services. The government has granted traffic rights to the low-cost carrier to operate flights to Dubai, Muscat, Singapore, Kathmandu and Bangkok. IndiGo recently met officials of the Directorate General of Civil Aviation (DGCA) to brief them on its preparedness to start overseas operations. The company is expected to announce details of international operations next week.
Industry sources said the airline would keep airfare competitive, possibly lower than the existing tariff level, and would start with single flight on each sector. IndiGo has grown its market share to 19% on lower fare giving jitters to rivals. “Everything is virtually ready. The airline is working on fare structure for different sectors which should also be finalised shortly,” sources said.
IndiGo will complete the mandatory five years of operation in the domestic market to be eligible to fly overseas. The airline currently operates with 38 A320 planes and connects 26 destinations locally.
The Gurgaon-based airline has decided to focus on short-haul overseas destinations only to begin with. The air traffic is currently growing faster on nearby international destinations compared to long-haul routes such as India-UK and India-US.
“For growth in outbound traffic of a country, there must be stronger expansion in regional connectivity. When we talk of regional markets we mean the Middle-East, Hong Kong and Singapore,” Galileo India president and CEO JB Singh said. In the last few years the air traffic on the short-haul international destinations has grown multi-fold with passenger profile changing significantly. As against people earlier flying to the Gulf and Singapore for work, Indians are now investing in these countries giving push to air travel on these routes.