Akasa Air plans to go international, increase daily flight operations from 110 to 150

Akasa Air plans to hire about 1,000 additional employees, bringing the total number of staff to over 3,000 by the end of March 2024. Vinay Dube, the CEO of the seven-month-old airline, which began operations in August 2022, stated in an interview with PTI that by the end of 2023, the airline will also begin operating on new routes and will introduce international flights.

By the end of the year, a "three-digit aircraft order," according to Dube, will be placed. Akasa Air is expanding its fleet to include 72 Boeing 737 Max aircraft, which are expected to be delivered by early 2027, in addition to the 19 Boeing 737 Max aircraft that are already in operation.

The airline will increase its fleet size to 28 aircraft during the upcoming fiscal year. Dubeemphasised that the company prioritises steady growth rather than "growth for the sake of growth," and that by the end of the summer, the airline will increase its daily flight operations from the current 110 (on 17 domestic routes) to 150.

By the end of the following fiscal year, the current 2,000-person workforce will increase to 3,000, Dube projected, and comprise 1,100 pilots and flight attendants. For planes that are set to begin flying in three months, the airline always makes advance hirings.

The CEO stated that the airline's three main objectives are to provide employees and customers with sustained levels of satisfaction and to do so with a stable price structure. This is made possible by the fact that the organisation, which calls itself as "India's most dependable airline," is not vying for top positions in the aviation industry or market influence.

He addedthat the airline was focusing oncountriesboth in the east and west. "... we may want to fly to X cities, and there may be traffic rights available for that country, but in that particular airport, you may not have slots. All these permutations and combinations are being worked on right now,” he told PTI.

(With inputs from agencies)

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