Indian Airlines aims to fly back into black

Indian Airlines, the country's national carrier, aims to wipe out its losses during the financial year. The company has already reduced its losses to around Rs 48 crore in 2003-2004 compared with Rs 232 crore in during the previous financial year.

Indian Airlines plans to increase the frequency of its flights for profit making international routes like Sharjah, Dubai, Muscat, Bangkok, Kuala Lumpur and Singapore and adopt various cost cutting measures.

"We are expecting to be a profit making unit this financial year. We have already reduced our losses to a great extent and are planning to reduce it further by implementing various cost cutting measures. We expect some favourable policies from the new UPA government at the Centre," Bharat Tikle, area marketing manager, Indian Airlines told Business Standard on Friday.

While the Airlines is planning to increase the frequency of its flights in the profit making international routes, it is also planning to reduce the frequency of short destination flights in the domestic sector.

"We operate various short destination flights in the domestic sector. We are planning to reduce the frequency of flights in the sectors were we are unable to generate our operational costs," said Tikle.

IA is also planning to introduce 10 Airbus 319s in the current financial year for its subsidiary Alliance Air, and will sell its 10 Boeing 737 aircraft. "Airbus 319 is a fuel efficient and cost effective alternative to the Boeing 737. This will help us cut down our costs," said Tikle.

"At present Indian Airlines has 36 Airbus 320s, five Airbus 300s and 10 Boeing 737s. We cover over 58 destinations in India and 17 overseas destinations," he said.

With Deccan Air introducing economic flights in the Ahmedabad-Mumbai for Rs 2,200 in April, IA was forced to reduce the price to Rs 2,000 from Rs 3,498. But Deccan Air further reduced the price to Rs 1,600. Talking about war fare, Tikle said, "We offer standard airline frills like on-board catering, business lounges, upper class seats and other promotional services to out customers, while the newly launched private airline do not."