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INDIA's national carrier will double the number of its flights to Bahrain with the introduction of a low cost service early next year, it was revealed yesterday.
Air India will replace its normal operations to Bahrain with its low-cost carrier Air India Express on April 1, said Air India manager for Bahrain and Jordan M N Naik.
At present the airline operates seven flights a week between India and Bahrain.
"This number will increase to 15 when Air India Express comes into operation," Mr Naik told the GDN.
Air India's Bahrain office yesterday received the schedule for the new service, starting on April 1.
Initially, 15 flights will be operated per week - five to Mumbai, three each to Cochin, Calicut and Delhi, and one to Trivandrum.
The airline currently operates seven flights a week - three each to Mumbai and Calicut, two to Cochin and four to Trivandrum.
New generation Boeing 737-800 aircraft will be used for the new service, said Mr Naik.
The all-economy flight has a capacity to carry 189 passengers.
"The new service will offer fares which will be at least 25 per cent cheaper than the market fare," he added.
"The flight will leave Bahrain in both the morning and evening. People can make their booking online or through their travel agents."
Air India Express, which was officially launched in May this year, now operates from several points in India to Dubai, Abu Dhabi and Sharjah, in the UAE, and Muscat, in Oman.
Meanwhile, Air India is to offer flights to Pune, Maharashtra, for passengers from Bahrain via Dubai in December."
Passengers will be taken by Gulf Air to Dubai, from where direct flights will be operated to Pune on Mondays, Thursdays and Fridays,"
said Mr Naik.
"Services to Pune via Dubai are offered at no additional cost."
On Air India's performance on the India-Bahrain sector, Mr Naik said a 17 per cent increase in traffic was registered between April last year and March this year, compared to the same period last year.
He attributed the increase to several factors, including Indian passengers' preference to travel on their national carrier.
Mr Naik said the airline's on-time performance in general was 98 pc.
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