Air India announces Australia non-stop
#16
Join Date: Feb 2010
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I don't think many passengers think of Irrop most of the times, and don't worry I am sure Delhi has airside transit facilities now for International - International transfers. I know the bags can be through checked if the flight is within 4 hours
#17
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Location: India
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its too soon to tell whether this route will work or not....i'm going to reserve judgment for the first 6 months of this route....
#18
Join Date: Dec 2008
Location: SYD,BNE
Programs: QF,UA,VA
Posts: 205
Del-mel 28/06/11
Just read the Australian Aviation Forum on Airliners.net, and came across this media report by flightglobal, AI will launch DEL-MEL on 28/6/11 and are also evaluating possibly BOM or DEL?-SYD, let's see this time if they make it down under..
link to article: http://www.flightglobal.com/blogs/wi...y-finally.html
Air India has set 28 June as the new start date of a daily Delhi-Melbourne service, which will be the only direct flight between the two countries, after a much on-and-off again experience with the route owning to a wavering Indian government.
The carrier tells Flightglobal's Air Transport Intelligence that it is now evaluating a service to Sydney. "Air India is planning to add more international destinations to its operations. In Australia, the other destination being looked at is Sydney," a company spokesman says.
The carrier had planned to start the Melbourne route last October but then canceled it. This February it received traffic rights.
Although the carrier has not specified its exact schedule or what equipment it will be using, it is understood Air India will be operating the 777-300ER to Melbourne airport, who says it is the right Australian city for Air India to serve.
"Over the last three years, there has been an average annual growth rate of 14% in visitors from India to Victoria, and Air India, by choosing Melbourne as their base, have seized this market opportunity," Melbourne airport chief executive Chris Woodruff says.
"Over the last decade, the Melbourne Indian community is also the fastest growing Indian community in Australia. This means significant travel by family and friends, demonstrated by 25 percent growth in 2010 from this segment of the Melbourne-India market."
Last month Air India petitioned is government to block other Indian carriers, such as Jet Airways and Kingfihser, to serve Melbourne so that the country's flag carrier could "settle down on the route", as one paper described. It is not known if India's aviation ministry approved the request.
Qantas operates a one-stop service to Mumbai via Singapore. It previously operated a direct flight to Mumbai but canceled it in 2008. Virgin Blue has said it intends to forge links with India as part of its forthcoming Asian network comprising direct flights and partnerships.
The carrier tells Flightglobal's Air Transport Intelligence that it is now evaluating a service to Sydney. "Air India is planning to add more international destinations to its operations. In Australia, the other destination being looked at is Sydney," a company spokesman says.
The carrier had planned to start the Melbourne route last October but then canceled it. This February it received traffic rights.
Although the carrier has not specified its exact schedule or what equipment it will be using, it is understood Air India will be operating the 777-300ER to Melbourne airport, who says it is the right Australian city for Air India to serve.
"Over the last three years, there has been an average annual growth rate of 14% in visitors from India to Victoria, and Air India, by choosing Melbourne as their base, have seized this market opportunity," Melbourne airport chief executive Chris Woodruff says.
"Over the last decade, the Melbourne Indian community is also the fastest growing Indian community in Australia. This means significant travel by family and friends, demonstrated by 25 percent growth in 2010 from this segment of the Melbourne-India market."
Last month Air India petitioned is government to block other Indian carriers, such as Jet Airways and Kingfihser, to serve Melbourne so that the country's flag carrier could "settle down on the route", as one paper described. It is not known if India's aviation ministry approved the request.
Qantas operates a one-stop service to Mumbai via Singapore. It previously operated a direct flight to Mumbai but canceled it in 2008. Virgin Blue has said it intends to forge links with India as part of its forthcoming Asian network comprising direct flights and partnerships.
Last edited by flyinsikh; Apr 24, 2011 at 4:08 am
#20
Join Date: Jul 2004
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I doubt misconnect will be a major deciding factor for the price sensitve end of the market- I see plenty of transit pax in SVO flying North America-India with SU. Was talking to one in the lounge who was stranded as his inbound was late and he did not have a Russian visa to get out- said he paid something like USD 2500 for his flight in business and now is stuck as SU had booked him on next day's flight with TK and he is stuck in the terminal.
#22
Join Date: Jul 2004
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#23
Join Date: Aug 2008
Location: Netherlands
Programs: TK Elite, QR Gold
Posts: 1,272
Amazed to hear AI is already talking about BOM/DEL - SYD. why dont they test the waters with DEL-MEL and see how to go from there. I give them less than a year on this route. As someone rightly pointed out earlier in this thread - student market is not the one you would like to build your route on.
#24
Join Date: Nov 2006
Location: cbr
Programs: QF WP (OWE) / LTG (LT OWS) | Hyatt Globalist
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It'll be interesting to see what happens to the student market in the coming years as the Australian Dollar strengthens (it has gone up from 33INR to 47INR in the last 6 years that I've been here); and the Australian Government tightens its migration program which makes studying in Australia as a less certain path to Permanent Residency.
#25
Join Date: Dec 2008
Location: SYD,BNE
Programs: QF,UA,VA
Posts: 205
It'll be interesting to see what happens to the student market in the coming years as the Australian Dollar strengthens (it has gone up from 33INR to 47INR in the last 6 years that I've been here); and the Australian Government tightens its migration program which makes studying in Australia as a less certain path to Permanent Residency.
Maybe they can also pull some of the trans-tasman Indian population to connect onto the MEL route??
Although the current connections are plentiful, with SQ,MH,TG,CX,QF/9W link providing excellent daily connections to DEL with decent connection times varying around 2hours transit time in SIN,BKK,HKG..
I personally think if AI times it connections well it could captilise on the Kangaroo route, to FRA,CDG **provided the fares are competitive** as the AUS-Europe bound traffic is also made up of a high number of backpackers/students who currently take the likes of Royal Brunei, CA to Europe or Air Asia
Has there been any failed routes for AI in which it has pulled out? like the case with 9W and it's SFO-PVG flights ??
Lets also not forget CARGO ?, bearing in mind if AI also keeps it fares attractive to DEL, with the possibility of Virgin Australia feeding in domestic connections to AI will obviously fill up the seats? maybe the demand for cargo will be sufficient to justify the route's existence? As Virgin Australia has hinted it want's to tie up with the Indian market, it either plans to enter India using it's own metal or may tie up with other airlines offering links to India.
Just on a side note, previously I have read since the QF/9W codeshare, 9W would never enter Australia but if the AI article report is correct as AI has sought the injunction on 9W/KF to enter MEL what's that gota say about the relationship of 9W/QF??
Last edited by flyinsikh; Apr 26, 2011 at 8:09 am
#26
Join Date: Aug 2000
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#27
Join Date: Dec 2008
Location: SYD,BNE
Programs: QF,UA,VA
Posts: 205
but let's bear in mind during that period the Indian population in Australia was very moderate as compared to today... it has only increased in the early 1990's-2000...
#29
Join Date: Mar 2008
Location: Adelaide, South Australia
Programs: Krisflyer, Asia Miles
Posts: 115
I've flown quite often between ADL and SIN on SQ and always there has been a large number of passengers connecting in SIN to India and again a large number of indian nationals on inbound SIN/ADL flights. ADL also has quite a large indian student population.
Just wondering if AI would consider operating either the MEL or proposed SYD services via ADL like CX does (i.e. while CX flies HKG/ADL/MEL/HKG could AI for example operate DEL/ADL/MEL/DEL). ADL also has connections to AKL on NZ.
Just wondering if AI would consider operating either the MEL or proposed SYD services via ADL like CX does (i.e. while CX flies HKG/ADL/MEL/HKG could AI for example operate DEL/ADL/MEL/DEL). ADL also has connections to AKL on NZ.
#30
Join Date: Apr 2011
Location: DEL
Posts: 292