Kingfisher, Spice may fly abroad

Eligibility criteria being reviewed.

New domestic carriers like Kingfisher Airlines, Air Deccan and Spice Jet may be allowed to fly on international routes sooner than anticipated, as the government is considering a proposal to lower the eligibility criteria.

The main criteria at present are a minimum five years of continuous operation and a fleet of at least 20 aircraft. Instead, the net worth requirement""Rs 30 crore now""may be raised and made the benchmark. The criterion of at least five years of domestic flying is likely to be slashed to two or three years. No decision has been taken on fleet size as a criterion.

Once the five-year condition is relaxed, airlines wishing to stick to domestic routes can still keep their net worth at Rs 30 crore, while the requirement will be higher for those flying to foreign destinations.

Civil aviation ministry officials said the proposal was likely to be included in the civil aviation policy, which was expected to be finalised in two to three months. It follows from the realisation that operational experience and management expertise can be hired.

Another argument in favour of a change in policy is that India's bilateral agreements provide enough scope for a large number of airlines to operate.

If the proposal becomes a part of the policy, the new domestic carriers will be able to fly in the lucrative sectors like India-US, India-UK and India-Singapore much sooner than anticipated.

Realising the potential of international operations, Kingfisher Airlines, which began flying six months ago, has set up an airline in the US to operate flights from India to other international markets. Its promoter Vijay Mallya strongly advocates the opening up of international routes for newer airlines.

But Jet Airways and Air Sahara, which have recently been allowed to go international after over 10 years of domestic flying, have been opposing any easing of the eligibility criteria.

Their opposition is not surprising because Jet and Sahara, finding their feet overseas, will have to contend with not only the established global carriers but also fresh competition from home. That may force them to further lower fares. When Jet and Air Sahara were allowed to fly to Singapore, the fare dropped to Rs 13,000 from Rs 19,000.