Indian budget airline IndiGo has expanded its network in the Gulf sector, with the launch of a new direct flight service to Bahrain from the Western Indian city of Mumbai.
Bahrain is the first post-Covid international addition to the Indian carrier’s network.
IndiGo said its new flight service to Bahrain, commenced from Monday, will operate as a daily flight for now.
The India’s largest airline by market share, however, said it has plans to launch more flights to Bahrain from other Indian cities from October this year.
Bahrain is IndiGo’s 25th international destination.
“The new flights will enhance international connectivity and also bolster trade, commerce, and tourism between India and the Kingdom of Bahrain, which is known for its pearl diving and trading tradition,” Sanjay Kumar, chief strategy and revenue officer of IndiGo, said.
He said the carrier would strive to offer affordable fares, on-time performance and hassle-free service for its new service to Bahrain, as it offers across its wide network.
Ayman Zainal, chief commercial officer at Bahrain Airport Company(BAC) said with the launch of the new passenger terminal, BAC was prepared for a surge in the number of airlines operating out of the international airport.
“We remain committed to working with our partners to develop new routes that will further connect Bahrain with the rest of the world. In line with this, we look forward to working with IndiGo to deliver an improved travel experience for its customers,” Zainal said.
IndiGo has been beefing up its operations in the Gulf sector of late, with the carrier launching two additional services last month from the Thiruvananthapuram, Kerala, international airport – one to Abu Dhabi and the second one to Dammam in Saudi Arabia.
While the Thiruvananthapuram-Dammam flight operates on a daily basis, the flight to Abu Dhabi flies thrice a week – Mondays, Wednesdays and Fridays.
Indian carriers have been of late aggressively expanding their flight network to the Middle East, especially to the UAE, with air travel between the UAE and India registering a massive surge in demand in the recent months, fuelled by pent-up demand, Dubai Expo 2020 and pick up in leisure travel.
According to industry data, the UAE-India sector posted a whopping 136 percent jump in air traffic in the first half of this year over the same year ago period.
The spike in air travel demand is despite a significant rise – about 17 percent in June alone – in airfares in the UAE-India sector.
Dubai is the top transit airport for Indian travellers for their onward journey to western destinations such as the US, the UK, Europe and Canada.
With a fleet of 279 aircraft, IndiGo currently flies to 24 international destinations, besides operating around 1,600 daily flights, connecting 73 destinations within India.
The carrier’s fleet comprises 146 new generation A320 NEOs, 37 A320 CEOs, 35 ATRs, and 63 A321 NEOs.
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