New Delhi: The government on Friday allocated flying rights to domestic passenger carriers to start operations to new international destination.
The government also decided to go in for fresh negotiations for additional traffic rights with some countries.
“New allocations are expected to give a major boost to Indian carriers and spur growth of the Indian civil aviation sector as a whole by considerably improving connectivity,” the civil aviation ministry said in a statement.
The statement said that with the allocation of new traffic rights the airlines’ entitlements over the existing ones have increased 60 percent.
“Increase in number of international flights will also enhance competitiveness among airlines and is expected to bring down fares, benefiting passengers,” the statement said, adding that approvals are for winter schedule, 2012, summer schedule and winter schedule, 2013.
According to the statement, the ministry will hold fresh bilateral air service negotiations with other countries with whom existing traffic rights have almost got exhausted.
“These include Singapore, Thailand, Abu Dhabi, Dubai, Saudi Arabia, Oman, Iraq, Macao and Afghanistan,” the statement said.
Under the bilateral air service agreement (BASA), traffic entitlements are made between countries by equally dividing passenger traffic. Sometimes code-share is invited between national airlines of the signatory countries for promoting services.
Under the approved traffic rights, national carrier Air India will be able to operate new flights such as Delhi-Rome-Madrid, Delhi-Rome-Barcelona; Delhi-Moscow; Delhi-Sydney, Melbourne; Mumbai-Nairobi and Mumbai-Al Najaf (Iraq).
Jet Airways got new operational clearance for Mumbai-Jakarta; Delhi-Barcelona; Mumbai-Zurich; Delhi-Tashkent and Mumbai-Ho Chi Minh City.
Low-cost carrier Spicejet got approvals for new flight services to Lucknow-Al Najaf; Varanasi-Al Najaf; Delhi-Macau and Delhi-Ho Chi Minh City.
