'Jet-Etihad deal best for India'

There will be no Air Kerala in the near future. At least not according to India’s Civil Aviation Minister Ajit Singh. Air Kerala is the state government’s planned project to assist Gulf-based NRIs with an international airline.  On Wednesday evening when asked about the planned project he said, “They have not even applied for a license. Moreover 50 per cent of Air India Express anyways flies to and from destinations in Kerala,” he said. Speaking to Emirates 24|7 during a meeting organized by Indian Business and Professional Council (IBPC) in Dubai, Singh said that he does not see any hope for Kingfisher Airlines to revive again. When asked if there would be any surprise news about Kingfisher Airlines, he said, “Kingfisher Airlines has actually surprised us all. Everyone likes to fly on Kingfisher but it is not a profitable model,” he said. “With Kingfisher almost out, only Air India and Jet Airways will be left to cater to International routes. There is actually scope for more. The number of seats from Abu Dhabi to India itself is expected to increase by threefold. Within the next few years itself it will increase from almost 30,000 to 50,000 per week,” he added. According to him, Abu Dhabi would soon become the third hub, along with Dubai and Singapore, for air traffic to and from India. UAE-based Etihad airways signed a recent deal with India’s Jet Airways to buy 24 per cent of its shares for about $380 million after the Indian government opened up the civil aviation sector for foreign investment. Describing the agreement as a major boost to India's civil aviation he said, “It will have far reaching impact, especially in our trade and investment relationship with the UAE.” The minister also said that India along with China will become one of the leading markets in terms of aviation industry by 2020. “We need a lot of smaller domestic airports and airlines investing in smaller aircrafts. Majority of the investment should come from the private sector,” he said. The government is expected to invest over $12 billion in improving airport infrastructure during the coming years. Yet, Air India continues to struggle. According to Singh the government has promised to pump in about Rs30,000 crores to improve the performance of the airline. But Singh also adds that it will be difficult for the Airline to succeed for as long as it is owned by the government. “It is very difficult for a government company to succeed in a service sector where it is usually the customer who is the king. But with a government company the attitude is that the government servant is the king,” he said. However he added that the frequent strikes by staff and pilots have come to an end and the on time performance has improved to 80 per cent,” he said. Emirates 247