Air India, the leading airline connecting India and the United Kingdom, faces increasing competition from British Airways, Virgin Atlantic, and India’s low-cost carrier IndiGo. Despite pressures, Air India aims to expand its market share through strategic route optimization and upgrades to its onboard services.
Speaking to Rhys Jones from Head for Points, CEO Campbell Wilson expressed Air India’s ambition, noting, “We are only scratching the surface, really, of the opportunity that is present between the two countries…” He cited access to aircraft as the main constraint in expanding their network.
Currently, Air India operates routes from major Indian cities like Delhi, Mumbai, and Bangalore to London Heathrow, with additional services from secondary cities to Gatwick. Birmingham is notable for its focus on visiting friends and relatives (VFR) traffic. Aviation consultant Rishi Jain emphasized Birmingham’s strategic importance, stating, “You can’t run a massive hub, a massive focus city abroad for Indians via a very pricey airport, because they want dirt-cheap tickets.”
Wilson highlighted the strategic importance of the UK, mentioning, “The UK for historical reasons, the size of the diaspora, the size of the economic links, is clearly a strong number two…” Since privatization in October 2021, flights to the UK have nearly doubled, with seat numbers up 105% from 2019.
Air India plans to expand services this summer, increasing frequencies on several routes, including Delhi to London Heathrow and Amritsar to Birmingham. However, the airline’s expansion is contingent on new aircraft deliveries, facing competition from IndiGo, which plans new long-haul routes by wet-leasing from Norse Atlantic Airways. Jain noted, “They’ll make a lot of money… there are a lot of people who fly via third-country airlines, who are so fed up with Air India…”
IndiGo’s entry into the long-haul segment could pose a significant challenge to Air India’s ambitions as they capitalize on their cost base and loyal customer market.
