However, having an aircraft is not cheap and an airline cannot afford multiple types of planes. Over a period of time, as airlines have moved to dual categories of planes, they have started adjusting the flights. Take the case of indigo.
Eight out of ten diamonds polished worldwide are estimated to be cut in Surat but for years the city yearned for air connectivity. While the diamonds crossed seven seas, a passenger could not take off from Surat for want of air connectivity.
The local law makers and citizen pressure groups started a campaign to attract airlines to Surat and for political reasons or otherwise, Air India came forward to start services to Delhi with a 70-seater regional jet, CRJ-700. In another such instance, in April this year, AirAsia India became the first operator to offer non-stop services between Delhi and Imphal, a route serviced via Guwahati by almost every operator flying to Imphal.
Is selection of a new route or a new station, a game of darts? Airline network planning, in fact, is a serious business, which involves data science, deep knowledge of market and aircraft in the fleet of an airline.
Surat has graduated to become a major destination for airlines. Air India added capacity by upgrading the flights from CRJ700 to Airbus A320, the city saw the re-entry of SpiceJet, followed by IndiGo and from nowhere, Surat is now connected to all the major metro cities and a few Tier-II cities as well.
Route planning or network planning has a significant impact on the financial position of the airline. For a company which is in the business of taking people from one place to another, the routes are what dictate how many people will fly with them. And it’s not just routes; it’s a combination of routes and aircraft type that will decide the pricing power and profitability.
No wonder then that as airlines started growing, both SpiceJet and IndiGo opted to have another aircraft type in its fleet – the Q400 and ATR72-600, respectively to connect to the hinterland in the country, where the traffic is expected to boom in years to come.
This story is from the January 2019 edition of Cruising Heights.
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This story is from the January 2019 edition of Cruising Heights.
Start your 7-day Magzter GOLD free trial to access thousands of curated premium stories, and 8,500+ magazines and newspapers.
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