Two months after launch, low-cost warrior AirAsia is expanding to uncharted routes in India.
The first A320 flight is scheduled to leave Bengaluru on June 12 afternoon, AirAsia India chief executive officer Mittu Chandilya told reporters in Chennai.
Tony Fernandes said the aviation sector here was a "double marathon" and not a "sprint".
It has aircraft utilisation target of 16 hours as against the current 13 hours.
'We expect inbound numbers in 2025 to come close to pre-pandemic levels -- if not fully match them -- by early 2026.'
AirAsia is facing a legal challenge from Bharatiya Janata Party MP Subramanian Swamy, whose petition comes up for hearing at the Delhi HIgh Court on Wednesday.
Hopeful of launching flights in India in next 2-3 months, Air Asia chief Tony Fernandes says that the airline would introduce 'dramatically' low fares in the country, which would be cheapest in the market and take air travel to masses.
In the initial phase, it would concentrate on destinations in south India, and on providing connectivity to small towns.
They weren't up for a windfall even after the trophy but life was certain to get a lot better as some sponsors and state governments stepped up to lift them financially.
Mittu Chandilya has promised himself and AirAsia chief Tony Fernandes that through the next four-five years, India operations would be the largest among those of AirAsia subsidiaries.
"Not even a single social media post from the Congress congratulating our national team for thrashing Pakistan thrice in the tournament and bringing the Asia Cup home," BJP IT department head Amit Malviya posted on X.
A woman passenger claimed that she had explosives and threatened to blow up the aircraft mid-air but it turned out to be a hoax. No bombs were found following a thorough search of the plane after it made an emergency landing.
In a culture where children take up the profession of their father, her becoming a politician was seen as natural and acceptable.
AirAsia India CEO Mittu Chandilya, who was here on the Bengaluru-Jaipur launch flight, said both the cities have great potential to expand and hence the airline has set aggressive targets and beginning of flights to the two new routes was a part of the business strategy.
'Some success has been achieved in raising the costs of terrorism for Pakistan.'
AirAsia India, which is using the training facilities of its parent airline AirAsia in Malaysia, plans to set up similar facilities in India in the coming years, airline sources said.
Karnataka Governor Thaawarchand Gehlot was on Thursday denied boarding on an Air India subsidiary AIX Connect flight over alleged 'delay' in reporting.
The airline would hire 100 cabin crew for the aircraft.
The airline is also looking at cities in the northeast.
Abhishek Sharma's scintillating 75 was beautifully complemented by Kuldeep Yadav and Varun Chakravarthy as India comfortably hammered Bangladesh by 41 runs to enter the Asia Cup final in Dubai on Wednesday.
Vistara has a three-class configuration with business, premium economy and economy cabins.
AirAsia has come under scrutiny since June when GMT Research issued a critical report questioning its accounts.
This Asia Cup has charred the relationship between India and Pakistan players.
Shubman Gill's fate wasn't actually sealed on Saturday when BCCI secretary Devajit Saikia announced the squad for the T20 World Cup but when the fourth T20 International was called off on Wednesday due to thick smog.
China has made serious inroads into Latin America, which the US may now be hinting is simply not ok: Stay in your lane, Xi! In simple terms, China will no longer have access to Venezuelan oil, points out Rajeev Srinivasan.
FIA has filed two separate petitions challenging the approvals granted to Tata-Airasia and Tata-SIA Airlines deals respectively.
This is the first time that AirAsia chief has raised concerns about the dual airline strategy of the Tata group, his partner.
India's new low-cost airline plans to go to Northeast.
AirAsia says deal not violative of shareholder agreement.
Given the cost structure in the country, it won't be easy for AirAsia to offer 'Nano' fares and still make money.
This was good enough for Fernandes to hire Chandilya to lead his India business.
In recent times, there have also been instances of GPS spoofing and interference incidents at Delhi, Mumbai, Kolkata, Amritsar, Hyderabad, Bangalore and Chennai airports.
AirAsia, which is a joint venture between Tata Sons Ltd, TelestraTradeplace currently flies from Bengaluru to Chennai, Kochi, Goa and vice versa.
Thai AirAsia operates a daily flight between the Indian and Thai capitals, besides a weekly flight between Kolkata and Bangkok.
India has wrapped up its operation at a strategic air base in Tajikistan's Ayni following the lapse of a bilateral agreement, people familiar with the matter said this week.
The Foreign Investment Promotion Board, headed by DEA Secretary Arvind Mayaram, approved the proposal at its meeting in New Delhi.
Samsung last week suspended sales of its latest flagship smartphone and announced a recall of 2.5 million units already sold, after faulty batteries caused some handsets to explode during charging.
Sanjiv Kapoor questions the rival's change in strategy and claims of full load.
iPhone maker Apple hit an all-time revenue record in India during September quarter, marking a strong growth streak in the world's second largest smartphone market where the tech titan has been deepening retail footprint and local manufacturing.
© 2026 Rediff.com - Investor Information - Advertise with us - Disclaimer - Privacy Policy - Sitemap - Feedback - About us - Terms of use - Grievances