Air India travel tips

Indian aviation watchdog Directorate General of Civil Aviation (DGCA) has changed flight crew regulations concerning flight duty time limitations, aligning them with international best practices. These regulations will be crucial to manage fatigue-related aviation safety risks.

Indian airlines will account for half of the country’s international passenger traffic by the 2027-28 financial year, according to a report by credit rating agency CRISIL Ratings. That’s up from 43% this fiscal year, with India’s international passenger traffic at around 70 million.

India is actively promoting itself as the next big wedding destination. At the first “Wed in India” Expo ongoing in Jaipur till Wednesday, tourism ministry official Manisha Saxena said that the rapid infrastructure development across India is aiding destination weddings. 

Emirates is famed for its extravagant service onboard its current fleet of Boeing 777s and Airbus A380s. It’s therefore little surprise that expectations are high for its incoming A350s – an aircraft that has been years in the making.

Air India’s new flagship has made its debut on the international stage. On Wednesday night, Flight AI995 departed Delhi for Dubai, operated by an Airbus A350-900 for the first time. 

India’s largest bank State Bank of India (SBI) has launched its first-ever travel focused credit card. ‘SBI Card MILES’ has been launched in three variants to cater to different types of travelers, from beginners to frequent flyers. 

IndiGo, which operates on the no-frills philosophy, has perfected its model of keeping costs low since 2006. The airline is one of the biggest customers of the A320/320neo family, with 1,340 of these ordered and over 350 in operation. 

More than 81% of the Indian GenZs – aged between 18 and 25 years – start planning their first international trips as soon as they secure a job or receive their first paycheck, online travel agency Skyscanner has revealed in a new report. Indians are historically known to start saving as soon as they are employed and have been conservative with their travel spends. These findings highlight how the youth, especially the growing middle class, is changing the tourism landscape in the country.

India is becoming a convenient hub for travel between Southeast Asia and the Middle East, IndiGo Chairman V Sumantran said during his address at a college in Chennai. He also cited the example of several airlines carrying passengers from places such as Bangkok to Jeddah or Dubai by connecting through Indian cities.

The domestic air passenger traffic in India during the 2023-24 financial year is estimated to stand at 154 million, according to credit rating agency ICRA. This figure surpasses the pre-Covid figure of 142 million domestic air passengers recorded in the 2019-20 financial year. The agency further stated that domestic air passenger traffic witnessed a 13% increase from last year. 

Vistara CEO Vinod Kannan has outlined a roadmap for the airline’s impending merger with Air India, following staff concerns and recent operational disruption.

“I assure you that the worst is behind us, and we have already stabilized our operations,” Vistara CEO Vinod Kannan wrote in an internal note to employees Thursday.

Online travel agency MakeMyTrip has announced a new exclusive charter service between Mumbai and Bhutan. This service is a part of its holiday packages and the exclusive charter will depart once a week.

The Goa tourism department has partnered with the organizers of the Ironman 70.3 India race to promote sports tourism. According to Goa tourism director Suneel Anchipaka, the aim of the agreement is to promote Goa as the premier destination for sports tourism. 

Online travel platform Agoda has signed an agreement with Goa Tourism to promote the coastal state. The collaboration aims to highlight various experiences that the state can offer to different travelers. 

How do you turn a net negative into a positive? That’s the challenge faced by Air India’s Chief Marketing Officer, Sunil Suresh. 

Good morning from Skift. It’s Thursday, April 4. Here’s what you need to know about the business of travel today.

Virgin Atlantic is best known for linking Britain with the United States, but there’s another market that is increasingly important for the carrier. 

We've previously covered how Air India is refreshing its identity. It started by making a massive aircraft order. Then it rolled out a new aircraft livery for its fleet and started installing refreshed seats on its wide-body aircraft. More recently, Air India continued its makeover with a new website and crew uniforms.

The Indian hospitality industry witnessed investments to the tune of $401 million in 2023, real estate company JLL revealed in a new report. This was nearly four times the transaction volume recorded in 2022. 

Air India’s ongoing transformation is one of the most closely watched developments in the aviation world – and rightfully so. The recently privatized airline, which serves a country of 1.4 billion people, is playing catch-up with its international peers. 

Air India CEO Campbell Wilson is undertaking a massive project: completely overhauling India’s newly privatized 92-year-old flag carrier after decades of underinvestment by the Indian government. The average age of an Air India employee was 54 years old. The airline had such a dated email system that its employees started using Gmail.