Flop flight to Dhaka

Calcutta: The Calcutta-Dhaka service of Air India Express, the low-cost carrier of Air India, made a disastrous debut on Sunday with the inaugural flight carrying just one passenger from the city to the Bangladesh capital.
The 186-seater Boeing 737-800 arrived at Netaji Subhas Chandra Bose International Airport from Dhaka in the morning with only four passengers, said airport sources.
“It took off from Calcutta at 2.05pm with two passengers. One of them was making an onward journey from Bangkok,” said an immigration official.
Md Moazzem Hussain, a 58-year-old Australian citizen, was the only passenger to board the flight from Calcutta. According to airline sources, there are very few bookings for the next two days.
A Boeing 737-800 aircraft burns around three tonne of aviation turbine fuel (ATF), which costs around Rs 2.4 lakh, for a round trip between Calcutta and Dhaka.
The flight will operate throughout the week, except Saturday, with a minimum fair of about Rs 3,000. It is an extension of the airline’s services on the Singapore and Bangkok sectors.
“We expect the passenger load to increase soon,” said an Air India Express official. “The travel agents were not informed. There was no awareness drive.”
Industry watchers feel the Dhaka-Calcutta route is currently not viable. Before Air India Express came in, Biman Bangladesh, Jet Airways and GMG Airlines shared around 300 seats daily. Less than half the seats are being filled up, said an airport official.
21/07/08 The Telegraphnew

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