Air India Express recently started thrice weekly direct flights connecting Indore, Madhya Pradesh, India and Sharjah. The airline claims that this new route till further assist the trade and commerce between the two nations. Air India Express also offers direct flights connecting Indore-Dubai.
In 2013-14, Indore was connected to only 6 destinations. In the last 9 years, air connectivity has increased to 24 including 2 international destinations. Earlier, weekly air traffic movement from Indore was 320 and that has now increased to 500, according to the civil aviation ministry.
Aloke Singh, Managing Director, Air India Express & AirAsia India, said: “The LCC entity of Air India, represented by Air India Express and AirAsia India, which is on the path to integration and merger, is poised for rapid network growth and expansion, with the huge fleet that has been ordered by the AI group. In line with our network strategy, the LCC entity will be focusing more on tier 2/3 cities of the country, which are the growth engines of the future.”
Recently Air India Express has tweaked its Dubai route from India by adding two cities and removing Mumbai and Delhi flights connecting to Dubai. This route will be served by Air India. Air India Express commenced its four weekly Goa-Dubai route from March 27, 2023.
All these changes are a result of its upcoming merger with AirAsia India, which will see it focus primarily on tier 2 and 3 cities in India. With Tata Group infusing another $100 million in Air India Express, robust route expansion is on the cards over the next few years.