Vistara connects London to Delhi ‘with focus on Europe’
INDIA’s Vistara airline has started daily direct flights from London to New Delhi as part of its plans to focus more on Europe, the company said last week.
The airline celebrated the flight from London Heathrow to New Delhi last Tuesday (17).
Vistara, a joint venture of the Tata Group and Singapore Airlines, said that more flights connecting Paris, Frankfurt and London to Indian cities will be launched when more aircraft and slots become available.
“Internationally, we cover a total of 10 cities, including London,” said Vinod Kannan, the CEO of Vistara, during a press conference.
“We are very happy with the route of Vistara, the load factors are very strong. The average load factor is 80 to 85 per cent and the front-end cabin is well subscribed,” he added.
“Europe will definitely be the focal point if we have the aircraft available. The US is an area we look forward to.”
Kannan revealed that the airline needs six Boeing Dreamliner aircraft but is currently operating with just two.
He added: “Like other airlines over the last two years, our plans have changed with different needs following day-to-day changes.
“Finally, we are here today. What is important is to look ahead and things are looking bright. We are proud of what we have done. We look forward to seeing what happens in the future with our product offer.
“Fares will be temporarily high on most long-distance routes due to the RussiaUkraine crisis, fuel prices, and strong demand against limited capacity. We are confident about the potential of the area due to comprehensive connectivity with all major cities of India, touchless technology, and benefits like Starbucks on board, which we are the only airline serving.
“We are an Indian brand, bringing warmth and hospitality for which India is known.”
The airline has a hub-and-spoke model and operates a codeshare with several leading airlines, including British Airways.
Vistara officials including Rashmi Soni, vice-president and head of corporate communications; Deepak Rajawat, chief commercial officer; and Kaizad Postwala, head of salesinternational; were also present during the press conference.
Vistara flies 78 routes between 29 cities in India and 10 flights abroad, the company said. Last Friday (20), it started daily direct flights between the capital New Delhi and Coimbatore in southern India.
The airline will also begin a daily direct service on the MumbaiCoimbatore route from Friday (27), and double the daily flights on the Bangalore-Coimbatore route starting next Friday (3), it added.
The Delhi-Coimbatore flight is at 11.45am IST and the return flight is at 3.15pm.
The Mumbai-Coimbatore flight departs at 11.10am and the return flight leaves the southern city at 1.30pm.
The two daily flights from Bangalore are at 7am and 7.25pm respectively. The flight timings from Coimbatore are 8.30am and 8.55pm, Vistara said.
“The launch of daily direct flights to Coimbatore from three metro cities, at convenient timings, is an important step towards offering more connections to our customers and densifying our domestic network,” said Kannan.
“With Coimbatore emerging as a key hub for trade and commerce besides being a preferred tourist destination, it’s a city that discerning travellers are increasingly flying to, giving us the opportunity to offer them our award-winning services on these routes too.”
Vistara is India’s highest-rated airline on Skytrax and TripAdvisor, the company said.