Jet Airways, India's premier international airline, and Etihad Airways, the UAE’s national airline, have announced a major new turnaround strategy for Jet Airways to return to profitability in three years following Etihad's recent acquisition of a 24 per cent stake in the Indian carrier.
Focus areas for international operations as part of the partnership will include network developments, including new services to Europe, China, Australia and Southeast Asia, expanded frequencies to existing routes and additional codeshares. Jet Airways' two and three class aircraft product will also be enhanced and the seat count optimised on wide-body Boeing 777 and Airbus A330 aircraft. In addition, the domestic business model will improve connectivity across India and worldwide, while removing complexity in product and fleet, including the standardisation and reconfiguration of the Boeing 737 fleet. The Jet Airways Board recently approved a three-year business plan to reshape the airline and secure its long-term future. The plan incorporates a series of critical measures that lay the foundations for a return to profitability, such as long-term network, fleet and product developments to optimise the airline's domestic and international operations. Jet Airways has also announced a new team at the helm with Cramer Ball as its new chief executive officer and Subodh Karnik as the chief operating officer, pending regulatory approval. Naresh Goyal, chairman of Jet Airways, said: "The coming together of Jet Airways and Etihad Airways has already proved a success for the two airlines and, importantly, has been beneficial for travellers. However, the market has been challenged by factors such as a difficult economic climate, volatile fuel prices, and the rapid growth of low-cost carriers in India. Tough measures were needed to ensure Jet Airways' long-term future, maximise its partnership with Etihad Airways, and enhance the benefits this partnership offers to passengers. "Our international operations are already profitable and contribute 45 per cent to our total revenue. We will continue to build on this strong foundation as part of our three-year turnaround plan and increase the contribution to 63 per cent by 2015. At the same time, we will address challenges in the domestic market with a model that removes complexity in our fleet, product and brand. This is not a short-term strategy, but we are optimistic about the future and confident about achieving the intended results." The airlines has announced a significant expansion of their codeshare agreement, after obtaining regulatory approval to codeshare on 43 additional routes, bringing the total number of services in their codeshare agreement to 71. The two airlines have been codeshare partners since 2008 and their relationship was strengthened in November 2013, after Etihad Airways received approvals to acquire a 24 per cent stake in Jet Airways, marking it the first investment by a foreign carrier in India's airline industry. Jet Airways and Etihad Airways stand to benefit from cost savings and synergies in areas such as fleet acquisition, maintenance, product development and training, and continue to explore collaborative purchasing opportunities for fuel, spare parts, insurance and technology support. The wide-ranging partnership has numerous advantages for travellers, including enhanced connections across the world through an expanded codeshare agreement, and reciprocal ‘earn and burn' rights and tier level recognition on the JetPrivilege and Etihad Guest frequent flyer programmes.