Will add 400 weekly flights this winter: Air India CEO Campbell Wilson

Air India will introduce over 400 new weekly flights during the upcoming winter season, with approximately 50 per cent of the flights serving international destinations, the airline’s chief executive office and managing director Campbell Wilson said on Friday.

The airline runs approximately 2,900 weekly flights, with roughly 32 per cent dedicated to international routes, according to aviation analytics firm Cirium's data. In the aviation industry, the winter season commences on the last Sunday of October and concludes on the last Saturday of March.

"We (Air India) have just entered the northern winter 2023 schedule, which will see us take deliveries of more than 30 new aircraft and add more than 400 weekly flights. Around 200 of these new flights will be on international routes, adding frequencies and connecting new city pairs between India and North America, Europe, and Southeast Asia," Wilson told employees in a message, which has been reviewed by Business Standard.

The company recently announced that it is starting flights on Bengaluru-Melbourne, Mumbai-Melbourne, Kochi-Doha and Kolkata-Bangkok routes.

"We are also hoping to launch four new international stations in the next few months, of which we will share more details in due course, as well as more interline partnerships. On the latter, our latest partner is Alaska Airlines, which will help expand our connectivity to multiple destinations in the US, Mexico, and Canada," Wilson noted.

The CEO also mentioned that the airline will receive 30 new planes in the winter season of this financial year.