Air India introduces online check-in option

Air India has launched a new service that will allow passengers taking flights to India to check-in online.

The carrier will open check-in 48 hours before departure for domestic and international flights originating from Delhi, Mumbai, Kolkata, Chennai, Bangalore and Hyderabad, reported Express Buzz.

Passengers will be able to print out their own boarding pass and once at the airport will be able to go directly to security checks rather than check-in.

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Air India May Offer Cheaper Flights on International Routes

Air India is likely to offer cheap flight tickets on several overseas routes to woo more number of international flyers. The new airfares will be put into effect from September 2012, stated a report of the Financial Express, a popular business newspaper in India.

India’s national airline, Air India is likely to come out with cheap flight tickets to European and North American destinations. The routes are highly popular among leisure holidaymakers and business travellers and will definitely woo flyers into booking cheap flight ticket deals with the airline.

Earlier, many rival airlines took advantage of the industrial strike that hit Air India and increased the fares on flights to some important destinations like London, Paris, Munich and Toronto to over 25 per cent. However, the new aggressive pricing strategy of Air India is likely to comfort the pockets of Britons and other international travellers who are looking to book cheap flights on these routes.

Endorsing the new move, an Air India official said trimming down of the fares is the only option that can bring Air India back to the market that has more or less been closed for over two months.

While the move hasn’t gone down too well with industry experts who termed it as ‘unproductive’, the airline has high hopes with its new aggressive pricing strategy and anticipates that these routes will definitely help the carrier once it deploys its highly fuel-efficient Boeing 787 Dreamliner on them.

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Air India Announces "Senior Citizen Companion Fare"

India’s flag carrier, Air India has announced “Senior Citizen Companion Fare” scheme that enables two travellers, who are 62 years old or more, to save significant sum of money if they travel together on roundtrip Executive Class on flights to India.

India's national airline, Air India, has come up with a new deal to attract senior citizens travelling to India.

Air India has announced a new “Senior Citizen Companion Fare” that will offer big savings to two passengers who are 62 years of age or older and are flying together on roundtrip flights to Delhi or Mumbai.

The deal will allow the two passengers to save at least $1,300 each on published round trip Executive Class tickets on flights to India, as per the airline’s press release. The offer is good on Air India non-stop flights to Delhi from John F. Kennedy International Airport, Newark Liberty International Airport to Mumbai, or Chicago O'Hare International Airport to Delhi and return.

The state-owned airline’s special round trip fares start at $3,394 per traveller (as reported in airline’s website). The fare includes all taxes, airport and security fees, and fuel surcharges. Passengers who want to take advantage of the “Senior Citizen Companion Fare” but wish to travel beyond Delhi or Mumbai will also be benefited as the airline has come up with connections to more than 50 other major cities in India at special add-ons, plus additional taxes.

Things to Know

Senior citizens aged 62 or more and seeking cheap flights to India with Air India’s new offer must be aware of below mentioned terms and conditions before taking the plunge.

• The offer applies to transatlantic travel Monday through Thursday in both directions, with travel commencing on or before October 15, 2012.

• Travellers must book their cheap flights to India by September 30th. For those travelling under the AI’s new scheme, the minimum duration of stay in India is 21 days and the maximum stay is 6 months. Moreover, it is essential that both passengers travel together on the same outbound and return flights.

• Air India marks out certain ‘blackout periods’ during when travel is not permitted with “Senior Citizen Companion Fare.” The airline’s website states:  travel is not permitted eastbound from June 1 to August 12, 2012; or westbound from August 1 to September 12, 2012 and from December 20, 2012 to January 30, 2013.

• Tickets are refundable, less a cancellation fee of $500 per passenger. Also, refunds will be given only when both tickets are submitted at the same time.

• For date changes, travellers will have to shell out a fee of $500 per traveller, plus any fare difference.

AI’s Executive Class

Air India’s flights to India from North America are served by either Boeing 777-200LR or 777-300ER aircraft. Passengers opting to travel with AI’s Executive Class will be treated with a variety of services and amenities.

Apart from spacious seats and huge LCD screens, passengers get a taste of award-winning in-flight service of Air India.

India’s Private Airlines will Fly Overseas Along with Air India

The government of India has decided to permit private Indian airlines to expand operations on foreign routes. While this policy will boost the private carriers’ health, it spells stiff competition for the national carrier, Air India.

In a massive push to private Indian carriers, the Indian civil aviation ministry ended Tuesday the freeze on them to expand their operations on foreign routes.

The freeze was imposed on Indian domestic carriers by the government of India in March last year so as to guard the national airline of the country, Air India, from competition on foreign routes.

The announcement made by the Indian government has brought a sigh of relief for the private operators who had been seeking for authorization to fly overseas routes, which so far were to be first offered to Air India as a part of the flag carrier’s exclusive Right of First Refusal.

While discussing the new agreement on Tuesday, the Civil Aviation Ministry of India was reported as saying: “The Government has decided to allow Indian scheduled carriers, including Air India, to utilise the allocated bilateral till such time they reach the maximum permissible limit under Air Service Agreements (ASAs)”.

In addition to encouraging codeshare agreements between Indian and foreign airlines, steps will be taken for promoting development of hubs for Indian carriers to carry Sixth Freedom traffic and attain a dominating position in the region, the ministry further said.

According to the Sixth freedom right of aviation, airlines can carry travellers or cargo from a second country to a third country by providing a stopover in their own country.

Impact of New Agreement of Air India

Air India is amongst top names that crop in mind of the holiday makers while departing India or booking flights to India. Though the state-run airline serves many destinations including Asia, Australia, Europe and North America, it has been facing several financial crises for quite long.

As per the Internet sources, the new agreement could put an unpleasant impact on Air India. The airline that at present holds over 20 per cent market share of international air travel from India will now experience tough competition from other private carriers including IngiGo, SpiceJet and Jet Airways to name a few.

On the other hand, the agreement can be really rewarding for the flyers, as with the boost in the number of flights operating on international routes, they might be able to gain cheap flight tickets. Even the international flyers seeking flights to India will also have a multiple options to choose from.

High Hopes of Private Carriers with New Agreement

The new agreement will certainly give a significant boost to the Indian domestic carriers who are willing to operate more flights on International routes.

For instance, Spicejet, a low-cost airline known for offering cheap flight tickets is presently serving flights to destinations like Colombo and Kathmandu. The airline is seeking permission to begin flights to Male, Dhaka apart from two destinations in the Commonwealth of Independent States which include Armenia, Azerbaijan, Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan, Moldova, Turkmenistan, Tajikistan, and Uzbekistan.

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