AirAsia India is planning to start 21 weekly direct domestic flights on two new routes as a part of its winter schedule. These flights will connect north India to Bhubaneshwar in the south, and Bengaluru in the south to Jaipur in Central India.
The Delhi-Bhubaneshwar flight will be operated twice daily while the Jaipur-Bangaluru will be a daily flight. The airline plans to operate its A320-200 fleet with a configuration of 180 passengers on the new routes.
Apart from the above two routes, the airline has also started a direct service connecting Lucknow to Mumbai, daily.
Experts are of the opinion that AirAsia India is focussing on domestic connectivity to beat competitors like IndiGo, Akasa Air, and SpiceJet.
Ankur Garg, Chief Commercial Officer, Air Asia said: “The launch of these new routes bolsters our network as we grow our footprint in Jaipur and have direct flights connecting Bengaluru, Mumbai, Delhi, Hyderabad, and Pune. These new routes will enable us to connect Jaipur with Chennai, Bhubaneswar, Goa, and Kochi with one-stop itineraries. Similarly, amping up our presence in Bhubaneswar, we have direct flights connecting Bengaluru, Kolkata, Pune, and Delhi; and connecting flights to Lucknow and Guwahati."
As of now, the Tata Group has an 83% stake in AirAsia India and there is a strong chance of a possible merger with Air India Express as a part of Tata Group’s strategy of consolidating all airlines under one umbrella. Sources reveal that Tata’s plan is to merge the two budget carriers to become one significant low-cost airline to give tough competition to the domestic airlines.
Although no firm decision has been taken the winds of change have already begun with several of AirAsia India pilots shifting to Vistara. Meanwhile, sources have clarified that the decision on the Air India-Vistara merger is expected anytime soon.