Airfares jump to absurd levels; hit NRIs' home visits

Bangalore/New Delhi: Thousands of Indians planning to fly home from Gulf cities such as Dubai, Jeddah, Muscat and Abu Dhabi have been stranded as fares soar to absurd levels due to a plunging rupee and a shortage of aircraft caused by Air India's never ending strike.
Seats on direct flights from these cities to Mumbai, Delhi and Kochi are completely booked for the next many weeks, forcing many passengers to pay through their nose for expensive and time-consuming trips via London and other European cities.
Travel from India to many Gulf countries has also become expensive, though not as much as India-bound travel from the Gulf.
Travel industry and airline officials say that fares from Mumbai, Delhi and Kochi to Gulf cities have risen 40-60 %, with budget carriers like IndiGo and SpiceJet offering fares starting at Rs 9,000 from Mumbai and Delhi. From the other South Indian cities, the fares start at Rs 11,000.
29/06/12 Sobia Khan & Anindya Upadhyay/Economic Times

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Categories: Indian Aviation- In General Jun 2012