Dubai, June 26: Kingfisher Airlines, one of India’s three largest carriers, made its long-awaited foray in the Middle East with the launch on Thursday of its first daily direct flights from Dubai to Bangalore.
Kingfisher hopes to win some of the high-volume passenger business between the UAE and India — routes on which Emirates Airline is firmly entrenched.
Dubai is Kingfisher’s fourth international destination after London, Colombo and Dhaka. The airline will soon add other Gulf destinations to its network, including Saudi Arabia and Abu Dhabi, said Siva Ramachandran, Kingfisher’s vice president for global sales. The new flights will use the Airbus A320 family of aircraft and feature Kingfisher Class, the carrier’s premium economy service.
“Our aim is to offer unprecedented convenience and comfort to our customers, both Indian expats as well as tourists from both countries. Thanks to our very competitive fares and Kingfisher Airlines’ vast domestic network in India, the initial response to the launch of these new flights has been extremely encouraging, and we look forward to rapidly consolidating our market share on this new international route.” Ramachandran said.
Flights to Kerala are also in the pipeline, he said, without giving a starting date for that service. Kingfisher flies to 69 cities in India with a fleet of 74 aircraft and operates over 400 daily domestic flights.
“Given the general slowdown globally, we will be cautious with our strategy of expanding our global footprint by adding new destinations to our international route network,” Ramachandran said. Kingfisher, which has ordered five Airbus super-jumbo A380s, last year reviewed its fleet requirements but denied that it would be deferring deliveries of any aircraft this year.
Kingfisher, together with rival Jet Airways, have mounted a punishing challenge to India’s state-owned carrier Indian.
All three carriers have been struggling to make money in India’s saturated domestic market and are therefore eager to fly overseas. However, the economic downturn has forced them all to temper their expansion plans.
Kingfisher should at least brings an edgier style and to the local airline business, with the flashy liquor baron Dr Vijay Mallya — the self-described “King of Good Times” — as its chairman and chief executive officer.
“Ever since its launch, Kingfisher Airlines has raised the bar with many market-firsts and innovations that have completely redefined the whole experience of flying. Given the strong linkages between the UAE and India, the launch of this new route will mean that travellers will now have the option to enjoy the award-winning Kingfisher Experience,” Mallya said, in a message sent to commemorate the launch of the new international route.
Kingfisher’s Middle East debut came amid reports that Indian oil refiner Bharat Petroleum Corporation Ltd. has sued airlines in the Bombay High Court to recover Rs3,000 million worth of fuel payments.
Bharat filed an arbitration petition in the Bombay High Court last week after it failed to recover money that Kingfisher owed it, according to Indian media reports on Thursday. India’s government last year gave airlines six months to repay what they owed.
–Agencies