CHENNAI: Domestic low-cost carrier AirAsia India is expanding into three new flights in India on the back of its recently inducted Airbus A320 aircraft.
The new flights will throw open three new routes from Ranchi — one each to Bengaluru, Hyderabad and Bhubaneswar. The carrier will also increase flight frequency on the Bengaluru-Hyderabad route.
The development comes on the back of a government-led push to increase flights to under-served locations, like Ranchi. “We are happy to add new routes connecting tier-II cities, while making air travel affordable to one and all,” said AirAsia India’s managing director and chief executive officer Amar Abrol, while announcing the new routes.
The expansion is important for the carrier, which has had its eye on a bigger share of the Indian market for a long time now. Group CEO Tony Fernandes had said as much during the launch of the Indian arm of the aviation group in June 2013, stating that India will “become a very big hub” for the carrier.
AirAsia currently commands a market share of around 3.4 per cent and servicing 16 destinations. Now, with the addition of its newest aircraft, AirAsia has a fleet of 13 A320 aircraft. However, it has not added new aircraft as fast as initially announced, failing to add 10 aircraft every year.
The government-led push for low cost regional air connectivity is set to work out well for carriers like AirAsia. Low-cost carriers already account for over 70 per cent of the total domestic air passenger traffic.