There is no denying that the India-US sector is one of the hottest routes for airlines both from India and the United States. Two carriers from India, Air India and Jet Airways, will start flying to America next month.
Even the fairly young Vijay Mallya-owned Kingfisher Airlines is planning to fly to the States by February next year, when its wide-body Airbus A340-500 aircraft arrive.
The story on the other end of the globe too is not very different. Delta Airways started non-stop flights between Mumbai and New York (JFK) last November.
Continental Airlines, which already has a non-stop flight between Delhi and New York, has brought forward its Mumbai-New York flight to October. Meanwhile, traditional players like Lufthansa and British Airways will continue to ply on this route.
In terms of fares, it is Jet Airways that takes the top spot whether you choose to fly economy, business or first. Jet will start flying its newly acquired Boeing 777-300ER (extended range) aircraft between Mumbai and Newark via Brussels from August 5. And an economy class return ticket on the airline costs Rs 42,000 plus approximately Rs 12,000 in taxes.
Close on its heels is Continental Airlines, where a ticket on a non-stop flight between Mumbai and New York will cost you Rs 50,020 minus taxes. Fares on Air India and Delta Airlines are more or less on par with a difference of about Rs 3,000 (see box).
Surprisingly, established players like Lufthansa and British Airways, despite newcomers invading their home turf, have priced their tickets higher.
An economy class return ticket from Mumbai to New York will cost you approximately Rs 83,980 plus Rs 13,969 in taxes. On British Airways the same will cost you Rs 67,437 without taxes.
This order, with Jet at the lower end of the fare spectrum and Lufthansa at higher end, changes if you are looking for a business class ticket. The return business class fare on Lufthansa is the cheapest of the lot.
Even the first class ticket on the airline is less expensive as compared to the rest. However, this price does not include a service tax of 12.24 per cent and a DU charge of Rs 300.
| American dream | |||
|
Airline |
Economy | Business | First |
| Jet Airways | 42,500 | 148,000 | 172,500 |
| Air India | 58,700 | 266,700 | 458,700 |
| Delta Airways | 60,971 | 162,471 | 162,471* |
| Continental Airlines | 50,020 | 197,480 | 197,480* |
| Lufthansa | 83,980 | 132,075 | 260,950 |
| |||
Fare apart, a deciding factor is whether your flight is direct or one-stop. Though the tickets on Jet are priced lower, your journey will last a little over 19 hours and include a stop at Brussels. Delta, Air India and Continental (the flights from Mumbai will begin only in October), on the other hand, will fly you to New York in 16 hours flat.
In fact, both Delta and Continental have entered into an agreement with Kingfisher to make travel from Mumbai and Delhi to other Indian cities smoother.
Right after announcing its flight last year, Delta signed an extensive interline agreement with Kingfisher Airlines whereby its passengers could take the carrier's connecting flights to Chennai, Ahmedabad and Delhi. Continental has entered into a partnership with Kingfisher Airlines for frequent flyer and airport lounge access reciprocity.
Snippets
Bridging the Gulf
In a major strengthening of its India operations, Emirates will introduce a thrice-daily service to Mumbai and a twice-daily operation to Chennai starting 28 October 2007. The airline will also add three additional flights each to Kochi and Hyderabad over summer and winter.
In all, the Dubai-based airline would have ramped up its India capacity from the current 71 to 85 passenger flights per week to eight Indian gateways. Flight schedules have been planned to offer seamless onward connections to Emirates' rapidly-expanding 91-gateway global network.
EzeeCash
Need cash? Buy an air ticket through Ezeego1 with SBI card. SBI Card's tie-up with the travel portal offers its customers a flat 25 per cent cash-back for booking their travel on all Indian flights. The offer is valid for domestic sectors flown by Indian and for bookings done before 30 September.
Take two
Now, a Srilankan Airline ticket in hand is worth two countries in the east. SriLankan Airlines has launched packages that give you the best of the Far East - Colombo, Singapore, Malaysia and Thailand.
The packages are for two nights in Colombo combined with three nights in either Singapore for Rs 22,599; Thailand for Rs 20,599 or Malaysia for Rs 25,199 inclusive of YQ taxes, return airfare, transfer and bed and breakfast and half-day city tour (except in Malaysia).
