Flights to India from Birmingham Airport, courtesy Bilga Air
19 Sep 2008
London: While Air India has chosen to suspend flights to India from Birmingham, a new airline, Bilga Air, has stepped in to operate flights between Birmingham and Amritsar starting 9 October.
Air India's decision to cease flights on the Amritsat – Birmingham – Toronto sector in order to protect its valuable slots at London's Heathrow Airport. Air India had announced that it would now fly on the Amritsar-London-Toronto sector.
Bilga Air is named after a village in Punjab, and its flights will be operated by Britain-based charter airline Monarch. Flights would operate on Sunday and Monday evenings, though the schedule would vary during the year. Around 90 per cent of the flights will be non-stop, though some would have a technical stop for fuelling.
Reports say that the aircraft's cabin would be a mixed configuration of economy and premium economy, with a return trip priced at around £575.
Air India's service linked Amritsar via Birmingham to Toronto in Canada, began three years ago, and touched Birmingham six times a week. Over 100,000 people, mostly from the Indian community, have used it since the beginning of this year. Air India's load factor on this route is at 85 per cent, well above the average for a long haul service.
According to Peter Vella, Birmingham International Airport's business development director, Air India would have lost its Heathrow slots if it did not operate at least 80 per cent of its allocated movement, and given their value, Air India would need to secure them. Air India is planning additional direct flights from India to the US, as a result of which the number of transit flights, including its services to New York though Heathrow, are reducing.
