Increased capacity will ease pressure on the supply side: Rajeev Kale

Sharing his comments on the Government of India announcing 100% capacity for flights, Rajeev Kale, President & Country Head- Holidays, MICE, Visa, Thomas Cook India, says, “We welcome the Government’s announcement permitting domestic carriers to operate at 100 percent of their pre-Covid capacity from October 18, 2021. With the return of consumer confidence in air travel coupled with a surge in holiday demand for the festive season (across Dussehra-Diwali and then Christmas-Year end), the announcement could not have come at a better time. Additionally, the increased capacity will ease pressures on the supply side – with cascading impact on air fares. From a Corporate MICE a perspective too, the increased capacity offers significant scope for domestic incentive groups serving to catalyse overall recovery for the  travel and tourism industry.”

Indiver Rastogi, President & Group Head – Global Business Travel – Thomas Cook (India) & SOTC, says, “Its about time that Indian Aviation opened up, we’ve been seeing flights filled up to the hilt till now; adding capacity will increase flights across routes therefore giving travellers more choices of timings thereby making it convenient for business travelers to manage their schedules and boost the confidence of travelers . This will also bring some relief on fares as airlines will seek to fill the capacity. We hope to see more flights put on the business/metro routes. We are witnessing a steady return of business from our corporate travellers and our SME segments and this announcement will infuse positivity, auguring well for much needed revival of the overall sector.”