Air India's rise to affect Emirates but we will adapt: Country head

Airline has approached govt for allocation of more flights to India

Air India’s rise will affect Emirates, but it will adapt by reviewing its flight network according to the situation and maintaining top-class in-flight products and services, said the airline’s vice-president (India & Nepal) Mohammed Sarhan. “We don’t focus too much on the competition. We do our part, and that is how we are always ahead of the game,” Sarhan told Business Standard in an interview.

In 2022, Emirates carried 4.45 million passengers on 15,814 flights between Dubai and India. In 2021, when Covid-related travel restrictions were in place, the airline carried 1.33 million passengers on 8,633 flights between Dubai and India.

Asked if he was worried about the incoming competition from Air India, Sarhan replied: “Yes, it will affect us. But, of course, we will adapt. The market is big. The demand is very strong. I think India deserves a lot more supply. At the moment, the demand is not matching the supply in India.”

He said India is doing very well, and it is going to be the next economic powerhouse of the world. So, even if there are more airlines in India, and Emirates operates more flights from India, demand will remain strong. “We don’t see it slowing down anytime soon. At least for the next 5-10 years, it (demand) is going to do well. So, we don’t see any problem or any threat,” Sarhan noted.

Under the bilateral air service agreement between India and the UAE for India-Dubai routes, each country’s carriers can fly 66,504 seats per week in each direction. Emirates has used up its entire allocation of bilateral rights, and it is currently operating 334 weekly flights between Dubai and India.

The senior executive said the bilateral agreement “is due for review or bilateral discussion” as Emirates needs extra allocation to fly more flights to India. “It has been a great story. We operate out of nine cities in India. Demand is very strong, especially after Covid. We are still seeing revenge travel,” he mentioned.

Emirates is continuously engaging with the Ministry of Civil Aviation on reviewing the bilateral agreement. “Quite often, you will see me there. Our embassy is also on call. Our head office is also engaging with the (Indian) consulates and embassies in the UAE. I think it is going to come sooner or later. There is nothing fixed at the moment,” Sarhan noted.

He said both Indian carriers and UAE-based carriers will benefit from an expanded bilateral agreement as the demand is very strong. “On our radar, we have cities -- such as Noida, Goa, Lucknow, Amritsar, Surat, and Pune. GMR’s Goa airport (in Mopa) approached us. Adani just did a briefing seminar for us on their plans and phases of implementation of the Navi Mumbai airport,” he mentioned.

Elaborating on how the airline will “adapt” to the rising competition from Air India, he said: “Like any other airline, we always review our operations, networks, and capacities. Adaptation could also be in terms of products. We have already launched our revamped premium economy, and it is already operating in some cities, such as London, New York, Paris, and Sydney.”

He said more flights will come with this revamped product. “We have 248 aircraft. It takes time to refurbish all of them. It will take a year or two till they are all deployed.”

The airline is always up to date with its in-flight product and services and that is its bread and butter. “Our ICE (information, communication and entertainment) system on the flights is always state-of-the-art. We are always on top when it comes to food and beverages,” he mentioned.He said the load factors on India-Dubai flights of Emirates have been “very strong”, between 90 per cent and 100 per cent. “It is very good. There should not be any risk or worry about competition. The demand is so strong and I think we are short of supply in the market.” 

Emirates thought that after the pandemic, the corporate traffic from India will remain low with meetings happening on Zoom and Microsoft Teams. “Apparently, it was the opposite. As soon as Covid-19 restrictions were removed, we had 60 per cent of pre-Covid corporate traffic in the summer season. We are now at 80-90 per cent. The corporate business is back on track,” he stated.