Airline Watch
Emirates expands India services
Emirates has unveiled plans to increase its India capacity from the current 71 to 85 passenger flights per week to eight Indian gateways.
In a major strengthening of its India operations, Emirates will introduce a third daily service to Mumbai and a double-daily operation to Chennai starting October 28.
The airline will also add two more weekly flights to Cochin with immediate effect and introduce a third extra flight August 1. Effective October 28, links between Dubai and Hyderabad will be boosted with three additional flights bringing Emirates' weekly total services to 11.
Emirates is well-poised to support India's growth in the 21st century with its efficient, reliable and increased air links.
Qatar to fly Nagpur, Ahmedabad
Qatar Airways will fly to Nagpur and Ahmedabad in India by the end of 2007, its chief executive confirmed. This will cap off an extraordinary year when fast-growing Gulf airlines made major inroads into India. The new daily service to Nagpur, at the geographical centre of India, and Ahmedabad, in the northeastern state of Gujarat, will mark the seventh and eighth Indian destinations for Qatar Airways, according to Akbar Al Baker, Qatar Airways chief executive.
Online booking for SriLankan in Qatar
SriLankan Airlines has extended its internet airline booking facility to customers flying out of Doha. The move is part of a rolling programme that will see all SriLankan Airlines stations worldwide offering the facility by the end of the year; an initiative which is aimed at simplifying ticket purchasing procedures and will greatly help with the International Air Transport Association’s drive to curtail carrier operating costs and increase service efficiency.
Etihad drops Colombo, adds Nepal
Etihad Airways will discontinue its services to Colombo from September 9. The Abu Dhabi-based airline will instead offer flights to Colombo through its interline partner Sri Lankan Airlines. Etihad Holidays will continue to market Sri Lanka in conjunction with its partners.
The airline has announced a four flights-a-week service from its Abu Dhabi home base to the Nepalese capital, Kathmandu, in October.
The flights will provide a valuable link for the 90,000 Nepalese nationals living in the UAE as well as the growing demand from leisure travellers looking to sample Nepal’s ancient culture and the world-famous Himalayas.
Lufthansa adds Pakistan to its map
Lufthansa German Airlines announced its new flights to Pakistan. Starting October, the airline will serve Karachi and for the first time, Lahore. Flights will begin on October 28 with three weekly flights from Karachi via Lahore onto Frankfurt. Connecting the commercial and industrial cities of Karachi and Lahore to the Lufthansa network will strengthen bilateral economic ties as well as the position of Lufthansa in the growing markets of the Middle East.