{"id":64462,"date":"2024-06-06T21:30:51","date_gmt":"2024-06-06T16:00:51","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/aviationa2z.com\/?p=64462"},"modified":"2024-06-17T12:39:43","modified_gmt":"2024-06-17T07:09:43","slug":"air-india-to-double-international-transit-traffic-by-2030-35","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/aviationa2z.com\/index.php\/2024\/06\/06\/air-india-to-double-international-transit-traffic-by-2030-35\/","title":{"rendered":"Air India to Double International Transit Traffic by 2030-35"},"content":{"rendered":"\n

DELHI-<\/strong> Tata-owned carrier Air India (AI)<\/a> aims to increase the share of international transit traffic in its total international traffic from the current 4% to approximately 10% over the next 5-10 years.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

This strategy is part of its plan to establish Delhi, Mumbai, and Bengaluru as major transit hubs, according to Chief Commercial and Transformation Officer Nipun Aggarwal.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\"Air
Photo: Robin Hardy<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n\n\n\n

Air India International Traffic<\/h2>\n\n\n\n

Aviation analytics firm Cirium reported that Air India’s transit traffic share rose from 2.84% in February 2023 to 5.2% in February 2024. International transit traffic refers to passengers who pass through a country on their way to another destination, reported Business Standard<\/a><\/em>.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

“We envision our three-hub strategy yielding significant benefits in the future,” stated Nipun Aggarwal at the CAPA India Aviation Summit 2024.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Delhi will serve as our primary hub, facilitating domestic-to-international (D-to-I) and international-to-international (I-to-I) connectivity globally. Mumbai will act as our secondary hub, and Bengaluru will be our tertiary hub, primarily serving the southern region of India.”<\/p>Air India Chief Commercial and Transformation Officer Nipun Aggarwal<\/cite><\/blockquote><\/figure>\n\n\n\n

Aggarwal highlighted that the current focus is on D-to-I, which accounts for 25 million passengers annually, but noted that the I-to-I opportunity is substantial, with 14 million passengers annually.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

“Previously, we captured only 0.5% of that market. However, our efforts over the past 24 months have been promising. The I-to-I traffic on our Air India network has increased from 0.5% to 4%.”<\/p>Air India Chief Commercial and Transformation Officer Nipun Aggarwal<\/cite><\/blockquote><\/figure>\n\n\n\n

“The situation is even more promising at the Delhi airport<\/a>, where the current share of international transit traffic in Air India’s total international traffic is around 10 percent,” Aggarwal noted.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

“On European flights, we are achieving nearly 20 percent I-to-I traffic.”<\/p>Air India Chief Commercial and Transformation Officer Nipun Aggarwal<\/cite><\/blockquote><\/figure>\n\n\n\n

\"Air
Photo: Eurospot<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n\n\n\n

Growth with 30 Widebody Planes<\/h2>\n\n\n\n

According to aviation analytics firm Cirium, the number of international passengers on Indian carriers passing through six major Indian airports\u2014Delhi, Mumbai, Kolkata, Chennai, Bengaluru, and Hyderabad\u2014on their way to final destinations increased by 97.09 percent year-on-year to 68,305 in February.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The top six final destinations for these transit passengers are Dhaka, Kathmandu, Colombo, Bangkok, Singapore, and Dubai.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Aggarwal stated, “Air India aims to increase the share of transit traffic in India from the current four percent to about ten percent over the next 5-10 years.”<\/p>\n\n\n\n

He noted that achieving this additional 5-6 percent share would require deploying 30 widebody planes, highlighting a significant growth opportunity. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

“With the two-way connectivity we plan to establish for traffic flow from the east to the west of India, we believe we are well-positioned to capitalize on this potential,” he added.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

He mentioned that major Indian airports like Delhi and Mumbai presently lack the necessary funds for their development as hubs due to heavy revenue-sharing agreements with the government, which burden them.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Thus, unconventional approaches are required to secure these funds and elevate these airports to hub status. Currently, the customer experience at these airports does not match that of major hubs in the Middle East, such as Doha and Dubai.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

He expressed Air India’s satisfaction with IndiGo’s decision to incorporate widebody planes into its fleet. This move comes at a time when the demand for long-haul and ultra-long-haul traffic from India is exceptionally high, indicating significant untapped potential.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

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Air India Refurbishing A320s with New Seats at AIESL<\/a><\/blockquote>