Kicking off our special focus on this vast, vibrant country, Alex McWhirter looks at ways to fly to and between its cities.
Since India’s air space opened up about eight years ago, the way we fly to and around this fascinating country has been revolutionised.
Prior to 2005, business travellers found that flight prices were high and availability limited because all routes from the UK were in the hands of BA and Air India. Flying within India was also tricky before “open skies” because domestic flights were limited in number, which in turn meant high fares and overbooking.
Today’s travellers benefit from a wide choice of airlines and routings, though levels of service can vary. The downside is that the aviation infrastructure is creaking at the seams, but improvements are in hand, such as the 2010 opening of Delhi’s Terminal 3, which brought global aviation standards to India and provides easier transfers between international and domestic services.
India is one of those destinations where an indirect flight can prove to be more useful than a direct service. Out of London, there is no lack of direct air service to the main gateways. The greatest competition can be found when flying to Mumbai or Delhi, each of which are served by no fewer than four carriers – British Airways, Jet Airways, Air India and Virgin Atlantic. BA also flies direct from London to Bengalaru, Chennai and Hyderabad.
But what if you prefer another carrier or wish to visit other cities? Or maybe you’re based in the regions and would rather not change planes at Heathrow, or want to avoid the rigmarole of connecting from an international to a domestic service at congested Mumbai?
This is where the indirect carriers score. Gulf-based Emirates, Etihad, Qatar Airways and Oman Air have all developed international services to cities across India. So while BA might consider itself a leading carrier to India with direct service from London to five cities, Emirates can boast services to ten cities from Europe provided you change in Dubai – and, unlike BA, can offer departures from Gatwick, Birmingham, Manchester, Newcastle and Glasgow.
Besides Mumbai and Delhi, the other eight cities served by Emirates are Ahmedabad, Bengaluru, Chennai, Hyderabad, Kochi, Kolkata, Kozhikode and Thiruvananthapuram. Some of these are also served by Etihad, Qatar Airways and Oman Air. Air France, KLM and Lufthansa are the main European carriers with services to main cities. Oman Air has expressed interest in serving Goa, which would make it the only scheduled airline from the Gulf to do so, while Lufthansa is the only European carrier to serve Pune.
Pune is an interesting one. Only two airlines offer an international service – Air India Express operates thrice weekly from Dubai, while Lufthansa operates four times a week from Frankfurt (with connections from the UK). Because the airport’s short runway restricts operations, both operate narrow-bodied B737s. Lufthansa flies in nonstop using a specially modified B737, chartered from luxury Swiss carrier Privatair. On the return, because of the restrictions, it touches down in Bucharest for refuelling.
Nevertheless, Lufthansa’s Pune route shows the time savings that can be made by avoiding the two main hubs of Mumbai and Delhi. According to lufthansa.com, a passenger departing Heathrow in May would take 11 hours 15 minutes to reach Pune, with a 75-minute transfer in Frankfurt. On the return, the flight via Frankfurt would take 13 hours 30 minutes, with 95 minutes allowed for the connection.
Elapsed flight times via Mumbai or Delhi can be significantly longer depending on the airline and the time of travel, as transit procedures can be lengthy. Nowhere is this more true than at Mumbai, where the international and domestic terminals function as two separate airports. Each terminal is several kilometres apart and the transfer bus runs over-congested public highways rather than within the airfield itself.
Passengers arriving and departing with Jet Airways experience the smoothest transfers possible as this carrier is well aware of Mumbai’s drawbacks. But even Jet requires a minimum international to domestic connecting time of two hours 30 minutes. If using other carriers then you must allow at least three or four hours and possibly even longer for delays if travelling on separate tickets. If you have a long wait between flights – some connections involve transits of more than eight hours – then it would make sense to book an airport hotel.
What about flying within India? Travel agents I have spoken to prefer to ticket domestic flights for their clients with Jet Airways. The privately owned carrier has a service-minded reputation, its network is widespread and it is reliable. Its flights can also be combined with those of leading carriers such as BA and Virgin Atlantic when issuing through-tickets. This is important because if you have any problems they can be resolved when you return home.
Some of the other, newer Indian carriers, such as Indigo and Spicejet, may have little or no representation in Europe, but if you are on business in India for a lengthy time and need to book a separate trip then it might be worth trying them. But beware of bogus sites – when checking flights for Indigo, I was directed to several websites that were travel agents and not the airline itself. The genuine site is goindigo.in.
Regular travellers speak highly of Indigo, but whichever carrier you choose, be aware that domestic travel can be a trial. Through-baggage checking from an international to a domestic flight may not be possible. You will need to show a ticket to enter the terminal, you may not be allowed to check in more than a few hours before departure, there can be a number of security checks, and it’s essential to have a stamped hand baggage label attached to your carry-on, as you will not clear security nor be allowed to board the plane without one.
Airbridges may not be available for domestic services so be prepared for bus transfers. Air traffic control issues, a result of the travel boom, can also spell delays. Experienced travellers say these build up later in the day when the skies become clogged, so the general advice is to fly early.
Whichever airline you choose, it may be best to avoid Kingfisher at the moment. Once hailed as the new face of Indian aviation, it fell from grace in a matter of months owing to a host of financial problems. Last year saw Kingfisher (once a prospective member of Oneworld) axe all international routes and instigate drastic cut-backs across its domestic network.
Latest reports in the press suggest the airline is on the verge of bankruptcy and, even if you might wish to sample Kingfisher out of curiosity, passengers cannot book flights – its online booking tool has been deactivated. Lucky, then, that there are other choices available for navigating this vast nation.
