The Hindu Business Line : British Airways, Air Sahara sign MoU to enhance cooperation

FOR GREATER COOPERATION: Mr Ronojoy Dutta, President, Air Sahara, with Mr Martin George, Commercial Director, British Airways, at a press conference in the Capital on Thursday. - Kamal Narang

New Delhi , July 7

IN a move that could eventually see fares on the India-UK route drop by 10-15 per cent and increase air connectivity between the two nations, British Airways (BA) and Air Sahara on Thursday signed a memorandum of understanding to look at increasing cooperation between them.

The MoU will see the two airlines evaluate schedules, routes, flights, ground services and the frequent flyer programme apart from exploring the potential for code-share agreements on services operated by them. Officials said both the airlines hope to convert the MoU into a formal agreement in the next three-to-four months.

"The agreement should be reached within the next three-four months. We look forward to it and are determined to reach an agreement to provide value to customers and each other. However, no specific deadline has been set for firming it up. We want to do the right thing," BA's Commercial Director, Mr Martin George, said.

The President of Air Sahara, Mr Ronojoy Dutta, added that the airlines were working on a comprehensive agreement and said that going by past experiences fares should be 10-15 per cent lower when the agreement is reached.

"The agreement will have tremendous benefits for the customers. A passenger travelling from say Ahmedabad or Kochi to Manchester will be able to enjoy a one-stop check in. Similarly, members of our frequent flyer programme Cosmos will be able to redeem their points on British Airways," Mr Dutta said.

The finalisation of the agreement will, however, not mean that the two airlines will not compete in the market. "We will both compete aggressively. However, the agreement should be beneficial to passengers looking for point-to-point flights between the two nations," Mr Dutta said.

The MoU comes even as both the airlines are looking to increase flights to and from India. While Air Sahara is to operate a daily flight between Delhi and London from this winter, the year is to see BA operate two flights a day between Mumbai and London apart from increasing services to Chennai. The airline is also to start operating flights to Bangalore, the second long-haul route that BA will launch this year.

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