Domestic air traffic to and from Ahmedabad nosedives

Ahmedabad: Termination of flights by low-cost airlines due to soaring aviation turbine fuel price has led to slump in domestic air traffic to and from the city in May and June.
According to statistics released by Airports Authority of India, Ahmedabad saw a rise of about 8 per cent in April 2008 compared to April 2007. But, this figure fell to 0.4 per cent in May. Worse still, June 2008 saw a drop in traffic of 6 six per cent compared to June 2007.
Officials said 2,07,038 domestic passengers flew in and out of Ahmedabad in June 2007. This figure declined to 1,94,921 in 2008, a fall of 12,117.
This was despite the fact that domestic aircraft movement to and from the city rose nearly 12 per cent with 256 more flights touching Ahmedabad compared to June 2007.
Senior AAI officials said share of low-cost airlines had always remained over 50 per cent. In April and May, number of people from the city taking leisure trips was on the rise because of affordable prices. Though flights withdrawn by low-cost airlines were replaced by regular flights, people found prices hard on their pockets. Now, they prefer rail travel for leisure trips.
Low-cost airlines were catering to all classes. Their schedules were even tailored to attract business class passengers flying for meetings, said an official of one of these airlines.
28/09/08 Himanshu Kaushik/Times of India

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Categories: Airports Sep 2008, Indian Aviation- In General Sep 2008