India’s leading airline company Air India has taken a big decision regarding international flights. The airline announced on Wednesday that it is completely canceling services on its six major international routes between June and August. Along with this, the number of flights on 23 other international routes will also be reduced.
This decision will directly impact passengers who travel on long distance routes like America and Europe. The special thing is that the canceled routes also include busy and popular routes like Delhi-Chicago and Mumbai-New York, which are heavily used among Indian passengers.
According to Air India, this decision has been taken keeping in mind the operating costs and external circumstances. The company said that route operations are being affected due to restrictions on flights from some countries. Apart from this, the continuously increasing prices of jet fuel has also become a big challenge for the airline.
The airline has clarified that operating many long-haul flights under these circumstances was proving to be a financially loss-making deal. In such a situation, it became necessary to take this step to balance the network and control costs.
The Tata Group-owned airline has also indicated that it will further restructure its international network to focus on more demanding and profitable routes. The company aims to provide better and stable service to passengers despite limited resources.
Experts believe that the global aviation sector is already grappling with challenges like fuel prices, geopolitical tensions and airspace restrictions. In such a situation, airlines have to constantly make changes in their route network.
Experts associated with the travel industry say that this decision will not only impact the passengers, but can also be seen on the competitive position of the airline, especially on those routes where there are already limited options.
At present, Air India has advised passengers to confirm their upcoming travel plans in advance and keep checking for alternative flight options. The company has also said that the affected passengers will be provided assistance and rebooking facility as per the rules.
