Air India announced on Tuesday that it will add more flights to Europe and North America starting this week, responding to increased demand for international travel linked to ongoing tensions in West Asia.
The airline plans to operate 36 additional flights connecting Delhi and Mumbai with major cities like London (Heathrow), Toronto, Frankfurt, and Zurich from March 19 through March 28. This expansion will provide over 10,000 seats across these routes, enhancing capacity during a time when international connectivity is limited.
These new services include routes: Delhi-London (Heathrow), Mumbai-London (Heathrow), Delhi-Frankfurt, Delhi-Zurich, and Delhi-Toronto. This move follows Air India’s earlier decision to add 78 additional flights on nine different routes between March 10 and March 18 to meet the surging demand.
Bookings for the newly announced flights are progressively opening through various channels such as the airline’s official website, mobile app, and authorized travel agents. Air India explained that this capacity boost aims to support travelers amid changing geopolitical conditions affecting travel options.
In a related note, the Directorate General of Civil Aviation (DGCA) has temporarily relaxed flight duty norms for Air India’s long-haul services due to airspace restrictions resulting from the Iran conflict. These restrictions have impacted operational routes and passenger movement significantly.
Meanwhile, IndiGo also stepped up its operations last week by announcing it will run 252 weekly flights to and from West Asia from March 16 until March 28. This includes around 126 flights servicing Saudi Arabia and about 98 to the United Arab Emirates but noted that some destinations like Doha and Kuwait will remain suspended until later this month due to temporary adjustments in their network.