Taking flight in the New Year

After a turbulent 2014, flyers can look forward to a smoother ride in the New Year. First off the runway will be Vistara, the new domestic airline launched as a joint venture between Tata Sons and Singapore Airlines. It starts operations on January 9 and promises to bring back the joy of flying.

The new airline will provide a “new end-to-end customer experience,” Phee Teik Yeoh, the Chief Executive Officer of the airline, told Business Line. Vistara will be the first in the country to offer a premium economy class cabin.

It has decided that the best way to a customer’s heart, and the wallet, is through his stomach. Vistara’s business and premium class passengers can choose between two non-vegetarian dishes and one vegetarian dish. “In the in-flight dining experience, we are going to have an eclectic mix of Indian and global cuisines driven by international culinary trends,” says Yeoh.

While there seems to be no dearth of competition in the Indian aviation sector, Vistara will surely add another layer as players vie for market share; especially with the Naresh Goyal-led Jet Airways re-aligning as a full-service carrier.

Data from the Directorate General of Civil Aviation shows that between January-November, IndiGo flew 1.91 crore passengers, followed by Air India (1.12 crore), SpiceJet (1.10 crore) and Jet Airways (1.05 crore).

Passengers may reap the benefit with pundits predicting fares in the industry to be “competitive” after the launch of the new airline.

In 2004, Ajay Singh had raised funds and restarted ModiLuft as SpiceJet. More than a decade later, he might be back as the saviour of the troubled airline. SpiceJet needs up to ₹2,000 crore to bounce back.

If Singh does put in the money, it would mean a change in the airline’s profile also.

The investor wants the airline to go back to becoming a ‘true’ low-cost airline, which means there will be no premium seats and fliers will have to pay to eat.

Another investor-activity in 2015 would be a little less nail-biting but IndiGo’s much-awaited listing will bring some cheer in the industry.

Jet Airways was the last airline to list on the Bombay Stock Exchange and its shares were oversubscribed nearly 19 times at the IPO in 2005. Now a decade later, will Rahul Bhatia do a better than Naresh Goyal? Investors are betting that the IndiGo-founder will.

There will be some action in the infrastructure-front too. The Centre plans to invite private companies to develop airports in Lucknow and Ahmedabad.

It will also set off redevelopment of old airports in India’s smaller cities. The Centre also plans to pass a legislation that will make punishment harsher for hijackers, who will be now sent straight to the gallows.

The punishment also includes confiscation of the hijacker’s property, which will affect his family and prove to be a big deterrent.

Will it be a third time lucky for a Canadian airline? After non-starters by Air India and Canada 3000 in offering non-stop flight between Delhi and Toronto, Air Canada is trying its hand.

The airline plans to launch a four-days-a-week non-stop flight between the two cities.

It wants to cash-in on the growing trade and investment between the two nations. The countries had inked a film co-production treaty in 2014 that provides tax benefits for Indian production houses making films in Canada. The first of the Air Canada flights will operate on November 1, 2015.

“In order to make the prospects of flying to Canada even more appealing the airline will dedicate its new route to the brand new Boeing 787-900 series aircraft,” said Arun Pandeya, Country Head and General Manager, India Sub-Continent, Air Canada.

The new aircraft will join the fleet in July 2015. Apart from Toronto, Indian fliers might also get to fly non-stop to other destinations.

The Gulf-based Qatar Airways has taken delivery of the first Airbus 350Xtra Wide Body, popularly called A-350XWB, an aircraft that will be able to fly longer distances.

The aircraft comes in three versions with a maximum flying range of 15,300km. Qatar Airways will unveil the aircraft to global media in early January. Though the airline is yet to announce the global routes for the new aircraft, pilots with Indian carriers say that a domestic airline will be able to fly non-stop to different parts of Africa with the A-350XWB. In addition, Indian carriers could also look to fly a one-stop service linking India with South America.

While new airlines and aircraft take off in the New Year, 2014 ends with the demise of Kingfisher. The airline’s licence, which was valid for two years from December 31, 2012, lapses at the stroke of midnight.