| No Frills Airlines, How viable for Indian Market? |
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By Joanne D’Souza
Low costs! No Frills! Exciting Prices! How viable is it all for the Indian market? Lows cost airlines in India have gone from a couple of players to 11 waiting for approval to take to the skies.
After the first low cost big guns Air Decan Indian aviation has seen a sharp rise in the number of cost conscious Indians now taking to the air route, making this trend either the newest fad or wisest business trick of all times.
The newest on the block is Spicejet and waiting in the isles are a dozen others like Paramount, Air India Express, Air One, Indus Air, East West, Go Air, Visa Air, Yamuna Airways, Magic Air, Crystal Air and Skylark, and with so much competition to deal with how on earth will they all survive?
Even in the U.S. and Europe low cost airlines have seen a steep incline in the number of players but a pretty sharp fall too, since all isn’t as rosy as it may seem.
It’s all fine to say we have no hot meals and fewer cabin crews to cut the frills and pennies away but how do players especially in the Indian market combat issues like the rising fuel prices?
Elsewhere in the world, low-cost airlines have garnered a big share of traffic by connecting profitable short-haul routes. When plying to metros, they avoid the congested airport hubs and operate out of smaller secondary airports. This brings in considerable cost savings. Aircraft spend minimal time waiting for landing slots and turnaround; and the airlines pay lower landing and navigation charges. On the other hand, in India, low-cost carriers that want to stay out of the congested hubs do not have too many choices. Very few of the large cities have a second airport.
On the whole India leaves a lot to be desired in development and viability of the low cost sectors and just how far the present players will go is any ones guess.
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