New Delhi: Civil Aviation Minister Vumlunmang Vualnam said at a meeting on the aviation tourism and tourism industry in India on Monday that India and China have ended the initial discussion on the resumption of direct aviation services. Valnam said, calling the talks “constructive” that “some issues remain unresolved” and would arrange other meetings.
Direct flight between the two countries was suspended in early 2020 after the Galwan Valley conflict. Before the cessation, airlines connected dozens of weekly services to New Delhi, Mumbai and Kolkata, connecting Beijing, Shanghai, Guangzhou and Kunming with Beijing, Shanghai, Guangzhou and Kunming.
In recent months, the momentum of recovery has increased. In March, the Chinese Consul General in Xu Wei in Kolkata said that both sides were restoring a “continuous dialogue” in which connectivity was restored, and the Indian Foreign Ministry confirmed that the two countries “in principle” agreed to restart the flight “in principle” after Foreign Minister Vikram Misri visited Beijing in January.
Vualnam also addressed domestic concerns about rising air tickets, highlighting that India’s regulated markets have restricted government intervention. He said the General Administration of Civil Aviation Monitoring Department tracked the price peak and the Airsewa portal will soon highlight the fares so that passengers can file complaints about overpricing. According to the secretary, the highest fare bucket accounts for only 1% of the total tickets sold.
Spicejet Chief Customer Officer Kamal Hingorani, citing IATA data, said India’s fares remain the lowest in the Asia-Pacific region. However, he noted that most tickets purchased 30 days in advance are below the cost, and profitability is only close to departure. Hingorani added that over the years, 16 Indian airlines have only folded in their operations, highlighting the need for the market to “maturity” to achieve sustainable profitability.
