The MoU, signed about two months ago, explores opportunities for direct flights between the two countries, a DIAL official said.
The collaboration with Sydney Airport, which is one of the world's best airports, would be on sharing of operational expertise and further extension of Sydney Airport's growing network of strategic partners, the official said.
"Sydney and Delhi are the largest markets for Australia- India air traffic in their respective countries and both cities are the gateway to their respective countries. Working together with Delhi Airport makes sense in terms of achieving our common objectives of growing this market," said Kerrie Mather, chief executive officer of Sydney Airport.
She said, the Australia-India market was the single largest market not served by direct services.
"Delhi has a population of more than 22 million and there is strong travel between the countries for business, leisure, education and visiting friends and relatives.
"With a large Indian community in Sydney and growing demand for inbound travel, India is a key emerging market for tourism, as well as business travel. About 44 per cent of Australian residents with Indian ancestry live in Sydney, so it's no wonder that Sydney is the preferred gateway for Indian travellers with almost 40 per cent of the market," Mather said
A delegation from Delhi Airport including the DIAL CEO, chief financial officer and head of strategy visited Sydney to develop joint initiatives on route development and improved passenger facilitation.
"Partnering with Sydney is a win-win for both airports. Other than connecting two very large, robust markets, Delhi's geographic location provides an ideal connecting point for long distance flights out of Sydney bound for Europe and beyond," said I P Rao, CEO of Delhi Airport.
"I am hopeful that Sydney Airport's partnerships with Delhi Airport, Destination NSW and other stakeholders will bring direct flights from India in the near future, he added. PTI SMJ
