The airline currently operates 56 flights weekly from five Indian cities, featuring three flights per week from Mumbai and double daily services from Delhi. Additionally, daily flights are available from Chennai, Bengaluru, and Hyderabad.
In an exclusive interview with PTI, Doyle emphasized that India is an exceptionally important market for British Airways and expressed optimism for future expansion in routes and flight frequencies.
Starting in October, the airline plans to reintroduce first-class seating on one of its flights along the Mumbai-London Heathrow route, marking the return after nearly five years.
”We want to be part of the aviation growth in India. Having been here for 100 years, our team consists of about 2,500 people in India… outside of the United States, India is our largest single market,” he noted, adding that capacity to India has increased by around 25 percent compared to levels prior to the coronavirus pandemic. During his visit to the national capital for the annual general meeting of IATA, he also pointed out that travel demand in India is expected to rebound rapidly over the next decade, particularly among the emerging middle class keen to travel.
”The growth potential in India is incredibly exciting and represents a once-in-a-generation opportunity,” he remarked.
The airline is also optimistic about cargo opportunities between India and the UK, especially following the Free Trade Agreement (FTA) between the two nations, expecting to enhance cargo transport.
”We anticipate increased cargo exports from India due to the FTA, along with an uptick in niche exports coming into India from both the UK and neighboring markets that we service,” he stated.
Regarding tariff uncertainties, Doyle mentioned that everyone is closely monitoring developments and their impacts.
”I have highlighted the benefits of the free trade agreement between the UK and India, and naturally, we must pay attention to any contrary developments. For the past 40 years, we’ve enjoyed liberating and opening trade,” he added.
British Airways has boosted its flights from India to 56 a week, up from 46 before the pandemic.
”Since the end of the pandemic, we’ve been steadily expanding, and currently, our operations are even larger than pre-pandemic levels, which is quite rare as many markets have not fully returned. However, India is one where we’re seeing growth. We also plan to increase our daily service in Delhi to three flights this winter,” Doyle said.
Moreover, upgrading the fleet with more wide-body aircraft will significantly enhance the airline’s long-haul operations, creating opportunities in strategic markets like India.
Stressing that British Airways provides value for money across all segments, Doyle mentioned a growth in premium leisure travel since the pandemic, a trend expected to continue.
Beginning October 27, British Airways will reintroduce first-class seating on its Boeing 787-9 fleet operating the Mumbai-London Heathrow route, alongside business, premium economy, and economy class options.
In response to a query regarding the airline’s connecting and O&D (Origin & Destination) traffic from India, Doyle noted that mature markets like Delhi and Mumbai primarily feature O&D traffic that commences and concludes in the UK.
”For markets such as Bangalore and Hyderabad, connecting traffic to the United States predominates… As we increase our services in India and enhance our offerings to the United States, we’ll provide travelers with more one-stop solutions to reach a wider array of destinations than any other carrier,” Doyle declared.
