SpiceJet celebrates two years of operations, looks at breaking even in Q1

As part of the company's celebrations upon successfully completing two years of operations, CEO Siddhanta Sharma said that the carrier would offer two lakhs seats at a special price of 99 paise, for two or more persons traveling together, beginning Tuesday, 22 May till June 6 on all its non-stop flights, covering 14 destinations.

The carrier has also tied-up with Tata AIG to offer domestic travel insurance at a nominal cost of Rs129, which Sharma described as "a unique proposal brought out by any airline in the country".

Sharma also said SpiceJet intends to add eight more aircraft by March next year. The carrier currently operates with a fleet of 11 Boeing 737s.

A review

The airline has so far been able to capture a market share of 6.9%, making it the country's second largest budget carrier, ferrying 22.16 lakh passengers a year. The carrier aims to nearly double its passenger capacity, and fleet size, by the end of this financial year.

The carrier started operations in 1994 as ModiLuft Ltd, with Lufthansa AG as a partner. The airline shut operations a few years later and was re-launched in 2001 as Royal Airways Ltd, only to be launched again in 2005 as SpiceJet, as a low cost carrier, after more investors joined the fray.