The Hindu Business Line : ‘Domestic airfares may go up in festival season’

New Delhi, Sept 24 Domestic air travel is expected to become costlier in the coming days. The Chief Executive Officer of Jet Airways, Mr Wolfgang Prock-Schauer, on Wednesday said that the airline will look at increasing fares during the festival season. The airline expects to post a profit or report breakeven by March 2010, he added.

“In the upcoming business season one would try, as a good business man, to increase fares. But one would have to look at the competition. We are certainly not talking about a double-digit hike but we will increase fares,” Mr Prock-Schauer said on the sidelines of event organised by the Confederation of Indian Industry (CII). In the past whenever one domestic airlines has increased fares the other carriers have done the same.

Fund raising

The airline also plans to raise up to $800 million from the market by 2010-11 although the route to be followed for raising the funds is yet to be firmed up.

Commenting on the airline expansion plans, Mr Prock-Schauer said that Jet, which will be inducting two new Airbus A-330 aircraft in the next two months plans to use these for increasing flights to Dubai and Hong Kong apart from starting operations to Saudi Arabia soon.” The launch of these flights will mark the end of the first phase of our expansion,” he added.

On job cuts

Asked on the job cut in its 100 per cent subsidiary, JetLite, Mr Prock-Shauer said that the airline had been able to reduce its workforce as about 350 employees had taken the Voluntary Settlement Scheme which was offered.

Jet Airways joins a growing number of domestic airlines which are taking various steps to decrease their cost of operations. Kingfisher Airline reduced its staff strength by offering a golden handshake to 300 employees, while Air India plans to offer a sabbatical of between 2-5 years to its employees so as to reduce the annual wage bill.

Jet Airways is also considering picking up a stake in the maintenance, repair and overhaul facility being established at the new Hyderabad airport, the CEO said.

Related Stories:
Aviation fuel to cost less, but airlines against fare reduction
Fuel prices raised; airlines may hike fares Rs 150-300

More Stories on : Airlines | Events | Jet Airways (India) Ltd

Article E-Mail :: Comment :: Syndication :: Printer Friendly Page