Dubai: Air India Express – fresh from an image makeover – will focus immediately on better connectivity between the UAE and destinations in India, as it soon starts taking delivery of new aircraft.

“By March next, we are looking at 21 new aircraft, and by December 2024, we would have 50 new planes, which would increase our total fleet size to 100 aircraft,” said Aloke Singh, Managing Director of the budget airline.

For Indian expats in the UAE, this would add up to much improved services on routes such as Sharjah to Surat, Dubai to Indore, or Sharjah to Delhi, and offering options to price-conscious travellers.
The airline may also look at increasing frequencies to destinations on the high demand UAE to Kerala sector. (But on the hyper-busy Delhi-Dubai or Mumbai-Dubai services, the flagship carrier Air India had taken over all flights from last summer onward)

And for those Indian expats elsewhere in the Gulf, the new aircraft for Air India express could mean more flights to Saudi Arabia and Qatar. “In the GCC, we are going to up some frequencies, and we are going to make some scheduled changes to serve the region better,” said Singh on the sidelines of Dubai Airshow.

“We operate an average of 24-25 flights a day (from UAE) to various points in India.”

“We operate an average of 24-25 flights a day (from UAE) to various points in India, he added.”

-B