Mumbai and Delhi airports are taking steps towards becoming global international hubs. As the government is also helping the country’s national and financial capitals cash in on the growing international air traffic, the airports are now connected with most key cities of the world.
Mumbai airport’s transit numbers went up from eight per cent of the total passengers in 2007-08 to 14 per cent in 2011-12, while Delhi airport saw it growing from four per cent to 13 per cent. Delhi airport surpassed Mumbai in total number of passengers handled in 2009-10.
According to International Air Transport Association standards, each transfer passenger is treated as one arrival plus one departure and hence counted twice.
“MIAL (Mumbai International Airport Ltd) is closely working with anchor airlines in India to develop Mumbai as a hub to increase sixth freedom passengers by connecting the regions across,” according to an MIAL spokesperson.
Experts say Delhi and Mumbai airports are perfectly placed to offer stopovers to Central Asian travellers flying to Southeast Asia. Most carriers operate on this route do not have aircraft that can fly non-stop to their destinations.
Delhi and Mumbai airports are cashing in on their distinct geographical advantage to connect South and East Asian countries with the Gulf and Europe; former Soviet republics with African nations and Europe with the Oceanic region.
“There is a lot of leisure and business traffic growing between Europe and Southeast Asia. Travellers are going for leisure tourism,” the MIAL spokesperson said.
As part of a new strategy, Mumbai airport is trying to woo potential airlines to connect the city with various unserved and underserved destinations across the world. The ministry of civil aviation has recently granted Air Astana of Kazakhstan Mumbai as a point of call. Air Astana has shown keen interest to start new services soon. Uzbekistan, another Central Asian country, has also shown interest to start new services from Tashkent to Mumbai and has requested the ministry to grant Mumbai as a point of call within the existing entitlements.
Other carriers have already announced new services to Mumbai. Maldivian, the national airline of Maldives, is starting its new services from Male to Mumbai from November. Virgin Atlantic Airways has already announced to resume services from October from London to Mumbai.
Air China and Iraqi Airways are the two services that have recently started new services, with the former connecting Shanghai-Chengdu with Mumbai and the latter Baghdad-Najaf with the Indian city. “MIAL is working closely with Air China to increase its frequency to daily. Air China intends to operate seven frequencies per week in 2013,” the spokesperson added.
Ethiopian Airways is already flying daily from Addis Ababa to Beijing, but with a stopover in Delhi. China Airlines jets from Taipei to Rome, again with a stopover in Delhi. For domestic passengers in the capital city, this is the only direct flight to the Italian capital after Alitalia shut its operations.
Others are also joining in. Air Astana has applied to the government to fly from Almaty in Kazakhstan to Bangkok in Thailand with a stopover in Delhi. Delhi International Airport Ltd (DIAL) executives say talks are on with various other Central Asian airlines to do the same. Aeroflot, Russia's largest airline, is looking at connecting Moscow with Kathmandu through Delhi.
Korean Air has shown interest to increase its frequency from three per week to daily, subject to the civil aviation ministry granting additional traffic rights, the MIAL spokesperson added.
Even the unserved destinations in West Asia are showing interest. Mahan Air (of Iran) has evinced interest to start services from Tehran to Mumbai.
The airline has requested the civil aviation ministry for traffic rights to Mumbai within the existing entitlements.
