Want to travel to exotic seaside destinations of Maldives and Phuket? Now you have a low-cost option, courtesy GoAir.
The Wadia's-owned airline will begin its international operations, starting with Phuket, Thailand from October 11 and Male, the capital of Maldives effective from October 14.
GoAir will operate three direct services a week from Mumbai to Phuket and Male respectively, and two direct flights per week to the two destinations from Delhi.
It also intends to start flights to Phuket and Male from Bengaluru in the "very near future," said Cornelis Vrieswijk, the CEO of GoAir.
Return fares begin from Rs 17,999 all inclusive between Mumbai-Male and Rs 18,999 between Mumbai-Phuket.
Delhi to Male and back, and Delhi to Phuket and back will cost Rs 18,999.
The airline begins its international journey after flying domestically for over a decade and will be the fifth Indian airline to start flights to overseas destinations. Currently, full service carriers Air India, Jet Airways and budget airlines, SpiceJet and Indigo have international flights.
The Tata and Singapore Airlines-owned Vistara is also expected to start international flights from the end of the year.
Vrieswijk of GoAir said there were significant opportunities in international markets, although he refused to disclose specific details on other international destinations the airline intends to fly to.
"We will be looking for wide-body aircraft, so we will explore long haul flying going forward. We will be meeting up with some of the aircraft manufacturers to have initial discussions about the opportunities going forward. Apart from the announcements, very shortly, we want to explore more internationally," he said.
The airline currently has a fleet of around 36 aircraft, which include 19 of the new fuel-efficient Airbus A-320Neo jets. Thirteen more of these planes are expected to be added this year.
GoAir has 144 of these A-320Neo planes on order.
While, these neo (new engine option) planes are more fuel efficient than the older A-320s, they have been plagued with major issues on the engines supplied by Pratt and Whitney, that has forced many airlines to ground planes and get the engines replaced.
GoAir still has two planes grounded, which will be put back in service once the replacement engines become available, said Vrieswijk.
The airline has been in dialogue with the engine maker as well as Airbus on the quantum of compensation it is seeking for the problems.
“The neo is 18-19 per cent more fuel efficient than the ceo (current engine option). So, it will contribute significantly to the low cost position of the company. In these kind of circumstances (engine problems), there is negotiation between the airline and manufacturer Airbus, Pratt and Whitney, could also be avionics support, suppliers and try to gain acceptable compensation,” said Vrieswijk.
Despite the engine problems, GoAir has no plans to scale down the 144 planes order, he said. As these new planes will continue to arrive, the airline is also exploring options to lease its older planes.