Vistara, the India-based joint venture airline between the Tata Group and Singapore Airlines, is gearing up to expand its operations to the Middle East in a big way, with plans to launch several new flights in the coming weeks.
The full service Indian carrier is also going for a fleet expansion to beef up its international operations, including the Gulf sector, the airline’s chief executive said.
“Vistara currently operates daily flights between Mumbai and Dubai, and we will be starting thrice-weekly flights between Jeddah and Mumbai from August 2. We are evaluating many other destinations in the region and will be launching new routes in due course,” Vinod Kannan, chief executive officer of Vistara, told Arabian Business.
Kannan, however, did not disclose the schedules of the new flight launches to the Gulf region.
Industry sources, however, said Vistara was set to announce a slew of new launches connecting India and more cities in the GCC region soon.
“Middle East, an essential commercial hub and home to a large Indian diaspora, has always been a key market for Vistara,” Kannan said.
“Our efforts to ramp up connectivity to the region are based on consistent rise in demand, as well as positive feedback from customers for our offerings,” he added.
The Vistara chief executive also said the strong bilateral ties India has developed with the countries in the Middle East have further increased the prominence of the region for Indian airlines.
Kannan said the airline has witnessed a consistent upward trend in demand for international travel – including the UAE and larger GCC sector – since the resumption of scheduled international operations.
“Healthy demand across our global network is mainly being driven by VFR (visiting friends and relatives) and leisure travel, with marginal improvement in corporate travel,” he said.
Besides Dubai, Vistara also operates to London, Singapore and Male.
Regarding Vistara’s fleet expansion plans, Kannan said the airline was on course to ramp up its fleet in order to strengthen its network globally.
“Currently, we have a fleet of 53 aircraft, and we expect to take the number to 70 by 2023,” he revealed.
Kannan said a large number of travellers from the Middle East continue to visit India for various purposes – medical, wellness, tourism, VFR, leisure and business.
The Indian government has also been actively promoting Indian tourism in the Middle East market.
“The Gulf sector has great potential, and the fact that more and more airlines, including us, are exploring possibilities of expanding operations to the region is a testament to that,” he said.
Kannan, however, said post-pandemic, long-haul travellers are increasingly seen preferring for direct, non-stop connectivity.
“And customers today also have convenient options to avoid transiting through a third airport, with airlines like Vistara offering direct, long-haul connectivity,” he said.
Kannan said Vistara would focus on its products and service attributes, as well as its brand new fleet to emerge as the airline of choice and increase its market share, including in the UAE and GCC sectors.
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