KUWAIT: Air India Express, India's state-owned airline, is winding up its services from Kuwait to the south Indian destination Mangalore, throwing travels plans of many expatriates into disarray. The airline has already decided not to operate its winter schedule from February 15 to March end and frozen the booking for the period.
Now, the airline is planning to discontinue its services to Kochi via Mangalore during the summer season starting from April 1, upsetting many Indians in Kuwait who relied on Air India Express to travel to south Indian states like Karnataka, Kerala and Goa. Air India Express is the only airline that operates to Mangalore from Kuwait servicing thousands travelling to the northern parts of Kerala from Kuwait. "We are facing some problems in maintaining the schedule to Mangalore. Some of our aircraft are going back on completion of a lease period," Ajay Sinha, Air India's country manager, told the Kuwait Times yesterday.
Air India Express flies to various destinations deploying 21 aircraft - a few of which were on a wet lease. According to officials, the airline has to return the aircraft as the lease period has ended. "Obviously, we are concerned about the situation because many of our passengers are affected by the withdrawal of the aircraft. We are talking to the management and hoping to find a solution to the problem," Sinha said.
With Air India Express wrapping up its Mangalore route, travel woes of Indian expats are going to worsen during the summer season in 2014. This takes place despite complaints that the number of airlines flying to south Indian destinations from Kuwait is dropping. "Airlines operating services using leased aircraft is nothing new. But they usually renew the lease with the same company or reach a new lease contract with other firms so that services will not be disrupted and passengers will not be affected. Air India Express has once again proved its non-committal attitude towards passengers," said Sathar Kunnil, a spokesman of the Kerala Airport Users Movement, Kuwait. The members of the movement contacted India's Minister of State for Civil Aviation K C Venugopal who assured them that he would look into the problem, Kunnil said.
The airline used to operate three services a week to Kochi via Mangalore. With the suspension of Mangalore service, the airline will only operate three flights to Calicut weekly, its only destination in Kerala. Air India Express has started flying to Mangalore following prolonged hue and cry and persistent demands from the Indian community members in Kuwait. "Kuwait- Mangalore-Kochi is one of the revenue-generating routes for Air India Express. Even from a business perspective, it is essential for Air India to maintain the service," said a top executive at a travel servicing company in Kuwait on condition of anonymity.
© Kuwait Times 2013
