Aviation

Vistara to get two Boeing 787 by March, eyes London

Updated : November 26, 2019 04:13 PM IST

Vistara plans to induct a total of six B787-9 aircraft and 50 narrow-body A320 family aircraft

The airline has no plans of switching to the business model of low-cost carriers

Vistara to get two Boeing 787 by March, eyes London

Vistara is keen to start operations to London as it gets ready to induct two Boeing 787-9 aircraft by March, Chief Executive Officer Leslie Thng has told CNBC-TV18.

The full-service carrier has plans to commence long-haul operations with the wide-body aircraft and Europe will be an integral part of the plan, Thng added.

"Widebody joining us in Q1 of 2020. First, two B787-9 to be delivered in February, March... we have plans to use B787-9 on long-haul. London is one destination we are keen on. We are planning and we will announce when we are ready," Thng said.

ALSO READ: Vistara begins Mumbai-Colombo flight service

Vistara, a joint venture of Tata Sons and Singapore Airlines, has plans to induct a total of six B787-9 aircraft and 50 narrow-body A320 family aircraft.

"Of the 50 narrow-body, 3 have been delivered. We will induct five more planes before the end of this year. We will add a dozen more in 2020," Thng said, adding that the capacity induction will continue to be used to grow the domestic network and a simultaneous focus will be laid on international expansion.

ALSO READ: Vistara starts hiring for wide-body B787 aircraft

Talking about the fare environment, Thng said that Vistara has witnessed a rise in premium traffic despite the slowdown and the airline has taken a long-term view on some routes to make them sustainable.

"Fare is always a function of supply and demand. We make continuous adjustments to fare. There will be some time needed for the market to accept some routes. We have taken long term view to make some routes sustainable," Thng said.

While the airline is yet to be profitable, it has no plans of switching to the business model of low-cost carriers.

"We have seen improvement in operating margin. We are on the right track to see Vistara profitable as soon as possible," Thng said.

The airline is also scouting for more codeshare partners. Vistara already has codeshare partnership with Singapore Airlines, British Airways, Japan Airlines and Silk Air.

The airline now connects 34 destinations and operates over 200 flights a day via a fleet of 27 A320 and nine Boeing 737-800NG aircraft.

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