Akasa Air has announced commencement of services from New Delhi, its sixth destination, as it marks 60 days of operations.
October 7 will see Akasa begin daily operations on the Delhi-Bengaluru and Delhi-Ahmedabad routes. It has announced eight destinations so far including Mumbai, Ahmedabad, Bengaluru, Kochi, Chennai, Delhi, Agartala and Guwahati.
Vinay Dube, Founder and CEO of Akasa Air, said at a press meet that its 30 flights daily would now increase to 36 on October 8 and 44 on October 21. He added that the company plans to have 300 weekly flights by end-October. In the last 60 days, Akasa has moved over one lakh passenger with a load factor of nearly 80%, said Dube.
It has six aircraft and plans to add one every fortnight. Praveen Iyer, Co-Founder, and Chief Commercial Officer, said the goal is to have 18 planes by the end of this fiscal and 20 by end-May '23.
The company has placed an order for 72 Boeing 737-8 Max aircrafts of which 19 will be Max 8 with 189 seats and the balance comprising 737 Max 8-200 with a seating capacity of 197.
According to the management, the acquisition process of these aircraft will be completed by the time Akasa finishes five years of operations. The airline plans to start international operations in the second half of next year.
Enhancing Customer Service
As part of its efforts to offer optimal customer experience, Akasa has announced that it will allow pets to be carried in the cabin so long as they are within the 7kg weight limit as directed by DGCA. Heavier pets will be allowed in the cargo bay and the airline has sought guidance from an NGO to handle the pets in the best way possible.
The first phase of the initiative starts on October 15 with the bookings while the service kicks off from November 1. Going forward, Akasa will allow more pets to travel, said Belson Coutinho, Co-Founder and Chief Marketing & Experience Officer.
Food will be another part of better customer service and it will update an on-board menu in 3-4 months with a special offering for each festival at ‘Café Akasa’.
As part of its sustainability drive, Akasa will use recycled materials for the clothing of its cabin crew along with 100% recyclable packaging in its food and biodegradable cutleries.
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