Summary:
• Ministry of Civil Aviation issued certificates to Shankh Air, Al Hind Air and FlyExpress.
• New carriers expected to support competition and regional connectivity goals.
• Industry seeks cost reforms to improve long-term airline viability.
INDIA’S AVIATION MINISTRY issued non-objection certificates to Shankh Air, Al Hind Air and FlyExpress. This has been done as a measure to ensure that Indian travelers have more options when it comes to airlines.
An additional concern attached is the cost-hostile environment for airlines, according to the Economic Times.
“Flying is no longer a luxury and the dream that it remain in the reach of the common man makes it mandatory to have cost and tax rationalization,” said a senior airline official.
Uttar Pradesh–based Shankh Air is led by chairman Sharvan Kumar Vishwakarma. Kerala-based Al Hind Air was founded by Mohammed Haris. FlyExpress, based in Hyderabad, is linked to a courier and cargo firm of the same name and is reportedly led by Konakati Suresh, according to News 24.
“Over the last one week, met teams from new airlines aspiring to take wings in Indian skies – Shankh Air, Al Hind Air and FlyExpress,” Union aviation minister Ram Mohan Naidu said on X Tuesday. “It has been the endeavor of the ministry to encourage more airlines in Indian aviation which is amongst the fastest growing aviation markets in the world owing to the policies of Modi government.”
Naidu said that schemes like UDAN have enabled smaller carriers Star Air, India One Air, Fly91 etc. to play an important role in the regional connectivity within the country and there is more scope for further growth.
The aviation industry wants the government to take a close look at factors that have led to India having among the highest operating cost for airlines globally, essentially high jet fuel prices and taxes, according to ET.
“In Indian aviation ecosystem, almost all stakeholders – barring airlines – make money. That’s why we keep seeing airlines regularly collapsing over the last three decades or even more,” one industry veteran said. “A new airline can be floated but the same remaining airborne due to several factors like high-cost structure, taxes, lack of management bandwidth and thin funding is a big challenge.”
Air India said that it is cancelling direct San Francisco flights from Bengaluru and Mumbai starting March 1. The airline cited rising costs and airspace restrictions and will expand Delhi–North America services instead.
