The Hindu Business Line : `Air Deccan to launch more flights; not to hike fares'

AIR Deccan, the country's maiden low-cost airline, will not raise fares but launch more flights to meet the increase in passenger demand, its Managing Director, Captain G.R. Gopinath, said on Monday.

Addressing a two-day conference on `Synergising ATC, airports and airlines to meet contemporary challenges in civil aviation', organised here by the Air Traffic Controllers' Guild of India, Capt Gopinath said that his airline would not do what is done by other airlines when demand for travel increases.

Probably, in keeping with this philosophy, the airline had last month dropped fares by as much as 20 per cent on its trunk routes just a day after all the major domestic airlines had announced a 10 per cent hike in fares.

Talking about the growth of Air Deccan, Capt Gopinath said that the airline had started with one aircraft and was on schedule in adding 17 aircraft in as many months.

He said that the airline would soon have achieved the distinction of having flown one million passengers.

Meanwhile, Air Deccan is to introduce a new system by which passenger flying with the airline with only a handbag will be able to generate his own boarding pass for the flight.

"The new system, which is being developed in-house, will be in place in Bangalore airport within the next two months.

It will allow passengers travelling with only a handbag to check themselves in at the machine," Capt Gopinath said.