40% of our traffic from India goes beyond Singapore: Scoot Airline

Approximately 60 per cent of Scoot Airline's passenger traffic from India is point-to-point, while the remaining 40 per cent continues beyond Singapore to destinations like Bali, Kuala Lumpur, Sydney, and Melbourne, said Brian Torrey, the airline's general manager for India and West Asia, on Thursday.

Scoot, which currently operates 80 flights per week between Singapore and six cities in India, is a subsidiary of Singapore Airlines. Singapore Airlines holds a 25.1 per cent stake in Tata Group-run Air India.

The forward traffic, also called "sixth freedom traffic," has been a key point of tension between India and Middle Eastern countries like the UAE and Qatar. These nations seek more bilateral rights for carriers like Emirates and Qatar Airways to expand services to India. With 70 per cent of their Indian traffic heading beyond hubs in Dubai and Doha, India is reluctant to grant more rights, preferring carriers like Air India to operate direct long-haul flights to North America and Europe.

 

In a press briefing, Torrey stated: "After the pandemic, we are less reliant on traffic ending at Singapore from India. We have improved our sales beyond Singapore, which reflects the demand due to network expansion and system enhancement...Roughly 60 per cent of traffic goes to Singapore, and the remaining 40 per cent goes beyond Singapore."

Scoot is seeking more bilateral rights from India so that it can operate more flights. "If you see opportunities and if you are restricted by the bilateral air service agreement (ASA), it is out of your control. If the bilateral ASA changes, you must be very nimble. You must move very quickly. We have seen other regions where the bilateral ASA changed overnight," Torrey noted.

"It is not in my control, but I feel like there are opportunities here where I can grow... I would love those. We are hoping and praying. We will wait and see."

Indian carriers are divided on whether the Centre should give more bilateral rights to Middle Eastern countries. While Air India and SpiceJet have opposed it, stating that the Indian government should instead focus on building major Indian airports as hubs, Akasa Air and IndiGo have stated that a decision should be taken after a holistic analysis.