Air Sahara has charted out an expansion plan for spreading its route network across the country.

After having taken a lead over Indian Airlines and Jet Airways in terms of passenger load factor in December, the airline is gearing up towards announcing two additional services in central and northern India and three new services in south, east and west.

While the airline is aiming at increasing the number of flights to 155 over a period of 3-5 years, the new flights would be added in the near future.

The private airline currently operates 61 flights daily. The airline reported a PLF of 70.68 per cent in December leaving behind the other two domestic carriers.

Senior Air Sahara executives said, "This year would be an year of connectivity for us. In the western zone we are looking at Gujarat in a big way. While in the south we would be increasing frequency in the cities including Chennai, Hyderabad and Kochi, in east Bhubaneshwar appears to be a potential destination. We are also keenly looking at Allahabad and Gorakhpur."

"We are still in the process of designing the route network expansion plan. However, a final decision will be taken soon," sources said.

The airline has already announced the addition of seven new aircraft to its existing fleet size. The first one would be joining the fleet in the first week of February.