More in India take to budget airlines

Mumbai: The greater increase of passenger traffic on nofrills airlines compared to full-service ones in the last two fiscals has experts predicting a shift towards low-cost carriers in the coming years.
"Low-cost carriers (LCCs) currently are the drivers behind the growth of the aviation industry," said Kapil Kaul, CEO, South Asia, Capa. "This is why even full-service carriers (FSCs) like Jet Airways and Kingfisher have subsidiaries that function as LCCs. This way, more people can be wooed to fly while operational costs are kept relatively low."
He said that in the coming five years, most domestic flying sectors, as well as international ones of 4-5-hour duration,
will be dominated by LCCs. IndiGo has already announced operations to Dubai, Bangkok and Singapore, which will start in September. Other LCCs, too, have plans to expand fleet and operational scope. "The expansion of LCCs will also make FSCs expand their no-frills subsidiaries," Kaul said. Agreeing with Kaul, an official from an LCC said: "We will soon see fewer full-service seats and more nofrills ones among the big carriers. Small-haul flights even to international destinations do not necessarily need food-on-board facilities . People can always buy food on board, thereby (controlling ) expenditure ."
20/06/11 Chinmayi Shalya/Times of India

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Categories: Low Cost General Jun 2011