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Vimala Vasan

From 20 flights a week a little over three years ago, IA now operates 43 flights a week on the UAE-India sector, with 16 flights being operated out of Dubai. Thiruvananthapuram and Jaipur were two new destinations added during the period.

ABU DHABI, June 11

INDIAN Airlines, which registered a 17 per cent increase in business on the India-UAE sector in the fiscal ending March 2003, and has seen sales rising by 35 per cent over the past three years on the sector, has chalked out a blue-print to consolidate its position through capacity induction and strengthening of existing routes, according to senior officials of the airline.

Mr Shyam Sundar, the outgoing UAE Manager for Indian Airlines, told Business Line that concerted efforts to tap the strong potential on the India-UAE sector over the past three years had led to a 35 per cent increase in sales and a 50 per cent rise in passenger traffic.

"The fiscal ending March 2003 saw a 17 per cent increase in sales compared to the previous year," he said.

Mr Aloke Singh, the newly appointed Country Manager for IA in the UAE told this paper that IA has a long-term and deep-rooted interest in the Gulf region. "We are planning to consolidate on the firm foundation set up on the sector and tap the strong potential for growth, particularly through enhancing existing routes and introducing new ones."

Mr Singh indicated that IA's overall overseas operations accounted for 35 per cent of the airline's network, with the UAE alone accounting for 14 per cent of this chunk.

Mr Shyam Sundar, meanwhile, indicated that the expansion of the airline's operations to the Dubai-India sector was one of the high points of the last couple of years. This move had considerably increased IA's presence in the UAE.

From 20 flights a week a little over three years ago, IA now operates 43 flights a week on the UAE-India sector, with 16 flights being operated out of Dubai. Thiruvananthapuram and Jaipur were two new destinations added during the period.

IA currently flies to 14 destinations in India directly from the UAE. The airline is now the second biggest carrier in Dubai and the Northern Emirates, he added.

Passenger traffic had risen from around 450 passengers a day to between 650 and 750 a day at present, the official said.

Apart from a big induction in capacity to the tune of 75 per cent over the past two-and-half-years, IA has also carried out a host of proactive measures like improving its distribution system, simplifying accounting procedures, introducing transparency in fares and developing information systems for better co-ordination with travel agents.

The airline official, however, indicated that though growth in business had been very good, there was pressure on yields faced by most airlines on the sector, mainly due to the accessibility of lucrative routes on the UAE-South India sector to more foreign carriers over the past couple of years.

The official said that IA plans to operate 22 additional flights during the peak summer season starting this month to meet the increased demand for seats as expatriate families go home in large numbers for the summer break.

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