At present, Air One is in the process of studying the feasibility of inducting A320 or Boeing 737 aircraft to start operations. The aircraft type will soon be determined by the proposed venture, after which, it will apply to the ministry of civil aviation for an import licence. Sharma is confident about the growth of the domestic aviation market. "Everyone is enthusiastic about the Indian growth story. So are we. It is an expanding market," he said.
He, however, refused to share the detailed plans of his start-up, as the airline is yet to secure all regulatory approvals from the ministry and the regulator, Directorate General of Civil Aviation.
Industry sources said Sharma was considering floating a new airline to cash in on the latent traffic potential in the domestic market.
Air One is the latest in the fray to look at starting scheduled commercial operations after AirAsia and Tata-Singapore Airline's Vistara.
India is one of the most under-penetrated aviation markets in the world. According to data shared by the AirAsia Group, the country has a fleet of about 422 aircraft, for a population of 1.2 billion. In comparison, China has a fleet of 1,981 for 1.3 billion citizens.
Data from the Centre for Asia Pacific Aviation for 2012 indicate that the per capita domestic airline seats is very low in India - just 0.07, compared to 3.35 for Australia, 2.49 for the US, 1.38 for Canada and 1.05 for Japan.
The number of domestic air passengers in the country is projected to triple to about 175 million annually by 2021 from 58 million in 2012.
At present, Air One runs charter services to domestic and international destinations. According to Air One's website, the airline has a fleet of six aircraft - a Lineage 1000, two Legacy 650s, one Citation XLS and two Ecureuil - which it plans to expand.
Air One operates regular charter services between Mumbai and Aamby Valley (a distance of about 125 km) from October to May.
