In view of the developing bonds between India and the United Arab Emirates (UAE), Air India will soon have direct flights connecting the major cities of both nations, a top official has said.
The management of Air India is mulling flights that connect Abu Dhabi with New Delhi and other Indian cities.
“The relations between two countries are on the upswing. There has been a great desire expressed by everyone that Air India should restore its full operations from Abu Dhabi to New Delhi. We are only connected to Mumbai and looking forward to having a connection to New Delhi,” said Ranjan Kumar Datta, Air India manager for Abu Dhabi and Al Ain region as quoted by Khaleej Times.
Revealing the strategy of increasing the frequency and seat pitch to woo the travellers, Datta said, “Our frequency here is not as high as we would like it to be and we are seriously looking at increasing the frequency. The amount of seats offered by other airlines are far ahead of us. However, our seat pitch is the best and unmatched by any airline in this region. Our lag of having a slightly older aircraft can be compensated with seat pitch and trained crew. We are also looking to introduce web check-in for Air India Express.”
Datta also accepted that there is stiff competition in Abu Dhabi and Al Ain sectors but informed that the airline is undertaking lot of improvements.
“We ensure that on the right occasions, we have the right capacity with reasonably comparable prices and provide comfortable travel for our passengers. We adjust seating capacity as per booking profile. We interchange aircraft as per requirement and help more passengers travel. Whenever requested, our head office have granted it in no time,” he added.
Datta noted seat adjustments are not possible in Air India Express as it has got a different fleet with just two versions.
He also said that issues with punctuality are things of the past. "We have been maintaining on-time performance. There might be a 10-30 minute delay due to push back slots and such delays are covered up in a 4-5 hour travel time."
Revealing a top offer in the pipeline to attract travellers, Datta said, “Our business class will soon have affordable price tags. People who have avoided business class due to high rates will be able to travel in it. We will soon have this offer in New Delhi sector too.”