Rajdhani wait-listers to get upgrade to Air India flight

The Maharaja will soon come to the rescue of wait-listed passengers of Rajdhani trains. Come June, IRCTC will provide Rajdhani wait-list passengers with the option of taking an Air India flight to their destination by paying marginally extra. Air India and IRCTC have already entered into a pact for the proposed arrangement which is expected to be in place “within a week”, the carrier’s chief Ashwani Lohani told news agency PTI. Under the proposed arrangement, people who have unconfirmed tickets across classes on Rajdhani trains would have the choice of boarding an Air India flight, provided the airline has services in the particular train route chosen by the passenger. Air India tickets would be offered to such passengers through IRCTC. Lohani, who is Air India Chairman and Managing Director, said details are being worked out and the arrangement is expected to be in place “within a week”. The wait-listed passengers of AC First Class of Rajdhani trains would not have to pay any additional amount in case they decide to take an Air India flight. In the case of those booked on Rajdhani Second and Third AC classes, the passengers would have to pay up to Rs. 2,000 per ticket as additional amount for flying Air India, Lohani said. The latest move is expected to help Air India in filling up more seats on its planes amid the carrier working on ways to turnaround its fortunes. Meanwhile, Air India is chalking out ambitious expansion plan to operate more number of smaller aircraft in various states as they look to increase regional air connectivity. In this regard, Air India’s wholly-owned subsidiary Air Alliance plans to increase the number of ATRs in its fleet to 35 in the next four years. (Source: PTI)