Air India has told the Parliamentary Committee on Public Undertakings that it would be “incorrect” to say that the Union Civil Aviation Ministry had favoured private airlines. The question arose in the context of the allegation that Air India had been made to give up its right to fly to some foreign destinations to private airlines. Until 2004, only Air India and Indian Airlines could fly to foreign destinations. Private airlines had been pressing the Government to allow them to share this lucrative market.
“Only on exercise of the first right of refusal by Air India for operations on particular international routes such rights are considered for giving to other private scheduled operators,” NACIL said in its reply to the Committee.” Air India exercised this right and the rights went to private airlines.
Industry sources say that there are various examples of this including on flights to the UK and the US. NACIL (National Aviation Company of India Ltd) was also asked to explain how it would be able to improve its commercial viability if they reduced their routes.
It has explained that the current international long-haul operations are giving rise to losses and so if its additional capacity were to be deployed at this stage it would increase the losses. The airline has pointed out that in the past 12-24 months Jet Airways has withdrawn the Mumbai-Shanghai-San Francisco and Amritsar London routes and Kingfisher has withdrawn the Bangalore-London route.
British Airways (Kolkata-London), Virgin (Mumbai-London), Air France (Chennai-Paris), KLM (Hyderabad-Amsterdam), Delta (Mumbai-Atlanta) and Austrian (Mumbai-Vienna) have all withdrawn routes for the same reason.
It has also told the Committee that even though most of the routes operated by it incur a cash loss, it will go on operating them. “Many of these routes are of strategic nature with long term potential,” the airline said.
|
|
