Airlines increase capacity to meet summer holiday demand

As per the official data, 13 domestic airlines of the total 15 submitted their flight schedule for the March-October period this year. The carriers who did not file their summer schedule flight plans are newly launched Zoom Air and grounded carrier Air Pegasus, according to the data. Indian Airlines summer schedule commences from the last Saturday of March and goes up to the last Friday of October every year. 

As per the data, budget carrier AirAsia India and full service Vistara airlines have increased their services by nearly 80 per cent during the summer schedule. While Vistara will operate 600 flights during the summer schedule as compared to 334 flights during the last summer, AirAsia India has increased the number of its flights to 502 as against 280 during the last summer, it said. 

Regional player TrueJet, which is one among the five air operators chosen to kick-start Government regional connectivity scheme UDAN, will have 238 flights this summer, up from 112 last year while Air India’s regional arm Alliance Air will have 368 flights as against 234 flights operated during the last summer.

Gurgaon-based IndiGo will have 6,432 flights in the current summer schedule compared to 5,323 flights a year-ago. The two other budget carriers – GoAir and SpiceJet – have also increased the services, 1,257 flights and 2,286 flights, respectively, per week under their 2017 summer schedule. 

State-owned Air India has increased the number of flights by 5.7 per cent to 1,788 while Jet Airways will operate 3,040 flights per week as against 3,100 flights operated by the airline in the March-October period of last year.  Jet Airways subsidiary airline JetLite has also reduced the number of services to 498 from 519 flights operated by it in 2016 summer. 

Even as Indians have started to go for holidays frequently, still 72 per cent do not know the best time to book travel, according to a survey by Skyscanner. It revealed that 72 per cent of Indian travellers do not know the best time to book travel for their holidays. It said 31 per cent of respondents correctly assume booking more than 12 weeks in advance is the best time to book flights. Additionally, 11 per cent feel that booking last minute is the key for getting a good deal, it added. It revealed that bookings for Bali and Kuala Lumpur are best secured 25 weeks prior to departure, however, both destinations receive most bookings two weeks prior to departure where flight prices witness a surge of 16 per cent and 11 per cent, respectively. Travellers with sights set on Europe could avail 17 per cent saving on fares to Amsterdam if they book 24 weeks in advance, it said.