AirAsia India spreads wings; flies to three more cities

Bengaluru, Aug 17: Buoyed by demand and growth, budget carrier AirAsia India is expanding operations to fly to three more cities from September 22 this year when the festival-cum holiday season commences.

"We will operate a daily service from Bengaluru to Hyderabad and Guwahati in Assam and from Hyderabad to Panaji in Goa from September 22," said AirAsia India Chief Executive Amar Abrol said here on Wednesday.

The airline's fares are priced at Rs 1,499, Rs 2,499 and Rs 5,499 for flights from Bengaluru to Hyderabad, Hyderabad to Panaji and Bengaluru to Guwahati respectively.

The three new destinations are in addition to the seven cities to which the two-year-old low-cost airline operates from Bengaluru and New Delhi, its hubs in the southern and northern regions.

The cities to which the carrier currently flies from Bengaluru and New Delhi are Chandigarh, Imphal, Jaipur, Kochi, Panaji, Pune and Vizag.

"Our seventh aircraft -- Airbus A320 180-seater -- will be operational on the new routes for which bookings commenced on Wednesday," Abrol told the media.

In the $30-million joint venture, Tata Sons Ltd has 51 per cent equity stake and AirAsia Investment Ltd of Malaysia holds the balance 49 per cent.

"Our loads and on-time performance has been promising and we continue to witness a growing demand for air travel," said Abrol.

According to aviation regulator Directorate General of Civil Aviation (DGCA), among the low-cost carriers, AirAsia India had 86 per cent seat occupancy in the first quarter of this fiscal and 2.2 per cent market share.

"We believe in enhancing connectivity and making air travel affordable to one and all," added Abrol.

Since commencing operations in June 2014, the airline has flown three million passengers over the last two years.

IANS