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Our Bureau

New Delhi , Feb. 25

INDIA and France have signed a new air services agreement to increase the number of direct services between them to 35 flights a week from the existing 14.

In addition, airlines from India will now be able to offer passengers connections to seven cities in the US and Canada including New York, Montreal and Toronto from Paris.

The agreement also allows airlines from France to begin services to Bangalore and Hyderabad. At present, they are allowed to operate to Delhi, Mumbai, Kolkata and Chennai.

Besides, the agreement opens a window of opportunity for three new airlines from India - Jet Airways, Indian Airlines and Air Sahara - to consider operating to France and onwards from there to the US and Canada.

This has become possible, as the agreement has amended the earlier provision of allowing only one airline from each side to operate on the sector.

At present, Air India and Air France are the only two designated airlines that operate on the sector.

While Air France operates a daily flight to Delhi and Mumbai, the airlines Dutch subsidiary, KLM, operates a daily flight to Delhi.

While the agreement allows all the four designated airlines from India — Air India, IA, Jet and Air Sahara — to make a claim for operating to France, it remains to be seen whether the two state-owned airlines will be in a position to make full use of the new offer.

In the recent past the airlines have been handicapped, as they have been finding it difficult to get additional aircraft to operate more flights.

The French Government has also agreed to assist AI get additional slots and terminals at the Charles-de-Gaulle airport in Paris.

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New air services pact to increase flights to France

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