The Hindu Business Line : BA, Virgin keen to expand operations to South India

Mr Andy Stern, General Manager - South Asia, British Airways, with Mr Andrew Cahn, Director, Government and Industry Affairs, in New Delhi on Thursday. — R.V. Moorthy

New Delhi , Sept. 8

THE UK's two major airlines — British Airways and Virgin Atlantic — are keen to expand operations to South India. While BA is looking at expanding its network to include Hyderabad and Kochi, Virgin is examining the option of operating to Bangalore, Goa and Hyderabad.

"There has already been close to a seven-fold increase in the flights that British Airways offers to South India, which is a very vibrant market. We are now actively looking at Hyderabad and Kochi as possible destinations," the Director of Government and Industry Affairs, British Airways, Mr Andrew Cahn, told Business Line. The airline is to start a five times a week flight from Bangalore in October and increase connectivity from Chennai during the same month.

It has already announced that it will offer a daily flight from both these cities from March next year by which time it would be offering passengers from Delhi and Mumbai the option of choosing from any of the two daily flights that it would have started from both these cities to London. Incidentally, the airline has been expanding services to India faster than any other part of the globe,a senior airline official said.

Echoing similar sentiments about the Indian market, Virgin Atlantic's Chief Executive, Mr Steve Ridgeway, said that in the medium term the airline would look at expanding operations to Bangalore and Hyderabad. "We are also looking at operating to Goa along with Virgin Holidays. It is possible that we start operations to Goa before going to Bangalore or Hyderabad," Mr Ridgeway said.

The two airline executives were in India as part of the official delegation accompanying the British Prime Minister, Mr Tony Blair, on his official visit here.

Asked about the interest of Virgin chief, Sir Richard Branson in picking up a stake in an airline of India, Mr Ridgeway said that the interest was still very much there. "There are still ownership issues that need to be addressed. In fact, this is part of the wider on going debate," he said.

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