AirAsia to expand connectivity to several Indian cities
Kolkata | Friday, Nov 20 2009 IST
 

AirAsia, the low cost overseas carrier, is mulling over making another hub in Bangkok next year to expand connectivity to several Indian cities in the near future.

Aspiring to tap the vast Indian market with its low fare, the airline also looks for making Kolkata a preferred transit point for fliers intending to travel between places like Mumbai or Delhi and South Asian cities like Kuala Lumpur and Bangkok by hopping low cost connecting flights.

''We are looking at many Indian places. We are going to make Bangkok a hub and introduce a flight from Phuket to Kolkata next year,'' Kathleen Tan, Regional Head of Commercial Airasia today said.

''We are also exploring connectivity between Bangkok and Mumbai, Kuala Lumpur and Delhi, Kuala Lumpur and Hyderabad, Bangkok and Delhi and Bangkok and Amritsar,'' she said at a programme that marked AirAsia's inaugural flight from Kolkata to Kuala Lumpur.

At present AirAsia has its Indian network only within Kochi, Trivandrum and Kolkata.

''With the commencement of the direct service to Kuala Lumpur, the people in West Bengal and India may now use Kolkata as a gateway to our extensive route network to ASEAN and beyond. With low cost being our strength, we hope to open up the market,'' she said.

According to Ms Tan, the average travel cost between Kolkata and Kuala Lumpur had been pegged around Rs 2,000, but it could shoot up to Rs 19,000 during the 'super peak seasons'.

Since booking opened for AirAsia's flights between Kolkata and Kuala Lumpur, the company had already sold 30,000 tickets, she said.

Replying to what extent would India contribute to AirAsia's revenue from overseas services, Ms Tan said it all would transpire only after continuing with the Indian operation for some more time.

She claimed AirAsia was the first airline in the world to abolish fuel surcharges and administrative fees from all its international and domestic flights, to make travel more affordable and accessible.

The airline is the largest low cost carrier in Asia having 70 destinations across 20 countries and nine major hubs in Malayasia, Thailand and Indonesia.

-- (UNI) -- 20CA26.xml

 

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