The imminent entry of the Tata-Singapore Airlines joint venture into India appears to have spurred Abu Dhabi-based Etihad Airways, which had acquired a 24 per cent stake in Jet Airways, to ramp up its services to the Indian market.

Etihad on Thursday said it will more than triple the number of seats on the Abu Dhabi-Delhi and Abu Dhabi-Mumbai sectors by November 1.

Etihad’s move comes within days of the Cabinet clearing a sharp increase in the number of seats that airlines from India and Abu Dhabi can offer between the two countries.

In addition, by December 31, Etihad plans to use a wide-body A-340-600 aircraft on one of the two daily flights to Mumbai and the wide-body A330-200 aircraft on one of the two daily flights to Delhi, the airline said in a statement.

The airline will also operate a larger aircraft which can seat 174 passengers instead of the 136-seater deployed currently on its daily flight to Chennai, the statement adds.

In April this year, India and Abu Dhabi agreed to increase the number of seats that designated airlines could offer between the two countries from 13,600 to 50,000. This was to be done in a phased manner over the next three years.

But the implementation ran into rough weather with the Prime Minister’s Office (PMO) receiving several complaints from Members of Parliament.

Following the complaints, the PMO asked the Ministry of Civil Aviation to move a note before the Union Cabinet explaining how the exchange had taken place.

The note was considered by the Cabinet recently, after which it gave its nod for the enhanced exchange of seats between India and Abu Dhabi.

>ashwini.phadnis@thehindu.co.in

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