India’s largest airline expects to reach pre-Covid international capacity by end-2021, CEO says

SINGAPORE — Indian low-cost provider IndiGo’s international operations could also be struggling, however the division might make a full restoration by the tip of the 12 months, the airline’s chief government advised CNBC this week.

Ronojoy Dutta of IndiGo, which is operated by InterGlobe Aviation, stated the cut up between home and international segments for the airline has been a “tale of two cities.”

Domestic restoration has been sturdy, whereas international restoration has “all the challenges of Covid and testing and quarantine,” he advised CNBC’s “Street Signs Asia” on Monday.

The nation final week prolonged a ban on international business passenger flights till the tip of February. Local journey was allowed to resume in May.

IndiGo is a low-cost provider that primarily operates inner flights, and is India’s largest passenger airline.

“We are struggling at only 28% of our pre-Covid capacity,” he stated of international flights. However, home operations have reached 80% of pre-pandemic ranges.

“I think we should be at 100% of domestic capacity by April at the latest,” Dutta predicted. “International will open slower, but by the end of calendar year 2021, we should be at pre-Covid levels internationally as well.”

That projection is extra optimistic than that of different airline executives. AirAsia CEO Tony Fernandes advised CNBC that passenger capacity is unlikely to reach pre-coronavirus ranges till 2023.

Emirates President Tim Clark in November stated the provider is eyeing a return to profitability in 2022.

IndiGo’s Dutta can also be optimistic in regards to the airline’s outlook after the coronavirus scenario ends.

“Once the pandemic crisis is behind us, we see lots of opportunities for growth,” he stated.

He stated India has very low air journey penetration and that there shall be a “huge amount of pent-up demand” when the financial system recovers.

“International is [an] even brighter picture,” he stated, including that revenue margins for international flights are greater.

Dutta stated he sees “lots of room for growth” for journey to and from international locations inside a six to seven hour flight from India comparable to Russia, Egypt, Malaysia and China.

“We are very excited about those growth prospects, and as you know, we have a big fleet expansion coming,” he stated. “I’m just itching to get to 2022 and [to] keep growing rapidly.”

— CNBC’s Saheli Roy Choudhury, Dan Murphy and Emma Graham contributed to this report.