Independent Indian carrier Spicejet will inaugurate flights to Dubai from Delhi and Mumbai later this month as it doubles its international network. The carrier will offer daily services from both Indian cities with effect from June 25, 2012. The flights will be operated with a single Boeing 737-800 which will fly a Delhi – Dubai – Mumbai – Dubai – Delhi routing.
Spicejet first entered the international market in late 2010 after fulfilling the required five year domestic operation that is required before Indian authorities will grant an international licence. The airline launched Delhi –Kathmandu and Chennai – Colombo services in October 2010 and now offers twice daily and daily flights on these routes, respectively.
“The Government of India has taken substantial and positive steps to open the market and allowing private carriers to connect with new international destinations,” said Neil Mills, Chief Executive Officer, Spicejet. “To leverage the opportunity and offer quality services at affordable price to our guests, we are pleased to announce the launch of flights to Dubai with more exciting destinations coming soon.”
Spicejet is currently the market leader on the Delhi – Kathmandu service with a 70 per cent share of the estimated O&D traffic, but it accounts for around just 13 per cent of the O&D passengers on the Chennai – Colombo link, a route that is dominated by SriLankan Airlines. The airline will also face intense pressure on its new United Arab Emirates (UAE) flights with Air India, Emirates Airline, IndiGo and Jet Airways also serving Dubai from Delhi and Mumbai.
Although Spicejet will face strong competition, the selection of Dubai as its third foreign destination is no real surprise. Demand between India and the UAE is significant and has grown 72.1 per cent in the past five years from an estimated 3.8 million O&D passengers in 2006 to 6.6 million in 2011. Last year’s figure represented a 3.4 per cent Year-on-Year rise on 2010. An estimated 514,000 O&D passengers flew between Delhi and Dubai and around 919,000 between Mumbai and Dubai last year.
Spicejet currently accounts for just a 0.8 per cent share of the international capacity from India. This will increase marginally to around 1.4 per cent when the new Dubai flights commence but it will certainly rise further as the carrier embarks on a likely major expansion in the international market over the coming years, especially at a time when some other major Indian operators are struggling.
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