Air India will effectively cease to be India's ‘national carrier', with the Government deciding to do away with the state-owned airline's right to have the first right to fly abroad.

This means private airlines such as Jet, Indigo, Kingfisher and SpiceJet will now face no problem in getting permission to fly abroad.

Currently, other airlines are allowed to fly abroad only if Air India is unable to do so. Since its inception, Air India has been enjoying exclusive right and, of course, ‘Right of First Refusal' over foreign routes due to its historic monopoly over foreign routes.

Countries give each other the right to operate flights to and from specific locations within their borders on a bilateral basis. Private airlines have long argued that since bilateral rights are national assets, these should not be wasted.

“The Government has decided to allow Indian scheduled carriers, including Air India, to utilise the allocated bilateral till such time they reach the maximum permissible limit under Air Service Agreements (ASAs),” the Civil Aviation Ministry said on Tuesday.

Air India's operational plans will receive due consideration in allocation of the traffic rights and entitlements, a statement issued by the Ministry added. The ASAs fix the maximum number of flights or seats to be operated by designated carriers of both countries each week.

Under-utilisation

With Air India in deep financial crisis, private airlines face a lot of problem in getting rights to fly abroad. This has resulted in fewer international flights by Indian carriers. The Government itself admitted in the Lok Sabha on December 14, 2011, that in 2010-11, Indian carriers utilised only around 20 per cent of the total entitlement. India has ASAs with 109 countries.

The Ministry would regularly review the bi-laterals to promote global connectivity keeping in mind the demands by the Indian carriers, international passenger traffic, trade, commerce and potential global and regional issues.

To cater to the travel, trade and commerce needs to countries that do not have Air Service Agreements with India, the Ministry would consider signing ASAs with them. Shishir.s@thehindu.co.in