Air India group to operate 72 West Asia flights amid geopolitical tensions

Air India and Air India Express will operate 72 flights to and from West Asia despite tensions, including services to Jeddah and Muscat. Meanwhile, airlines including IndiGo and Akasa Air introduced fuel surcharges due to rising ATF prices

New Delhi: Air India and Air India Express are scheduled to operate combined 72 scheduled and non-scheduled flights, to and from the West Asia region, on Sunday amid the geopolitical tensions. Both carriers will continue operating their respective scheduled services to and from Jeddah and Muscat on March 15, including a total of 8 flights between India and Jeddah.

“Of these, Air India will operate one return service each from Delhi and Mumbai, while Air India Express will also operate one flight each from Bengaluru and Kozhikode,” said the airline.

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Air India Express will also operate 12 scheduled flights to and from Muscat, with services from Delhi, Kochi, Kozhikode, Mangaluru, Mumbai and Thiruvananthapuram. In addition, Air India and Air India Express would operate a total of 52 non-scheduled flights to and from the United Arab Emirates (UAE) and Saudi Arabia, subject to availability of slots and other prevailing conditions at the departure stations at the time.

According to the airline, these flights are being operated with the requisite permissions from the relevant Indian and local regulatory authorities. “Air India group is exploring every opportunity to operate other additional ad-hoc flights to and from destinations in West Asia,” it added.

Meanwhile, after Air India and IndiGo, Akasa Air has introduced a fuel surcharge on its flights, following a rise in aviation turbine fuel (ATF) prices amid evolving geopolitical developments in the Middle East. The airline said the surcharge will range from Rs 199 to Rs 1,300 across its domestic and international routes.

IndiGo earlier announced a fuel surcharge on both domestic and international flight tickets, starting March 14. In a statement, the airline said the surcharge will range between Rs 425 and Rs 2,300 depending on the route. Air India and Air India Express also announced the introduction of a fuel surcharge on flight tickets.

According to the airline group, a fuel surcharge of Rs 399 per ticket on domestic flights came into effect from March 12.