The decision of the Union Civil Aviation Ministry to issue six no
objection certificates to applicants both in the national and regional sectors
raises a few questions. Air Asia has just taken to the skies in India. The
Tata-Singapore Airlines joint venture airline should become operational by the
year-end, and Air Pegasus is likely to get the nod soon. India already has eight
airlines, providing a dense network of flights linking different parts of the
country, though not with a uniform spread. While the public sector Air India
gets weighed down with social commitments and the burden of government or
political interference, the private airlines get to run on more commercial
lines. However, except for Indigo, which turns in a profit most of the time, all
the airlines are running up losses, looking to the government to provide some
relief or concessions. The charge of the public sector airline is that the
government and the authorities are more helpful to the private airlines. Air
India has been bleeding consistently, and the government has been injecting
funds in small doses to help it survive. It has not been able to acquire all the
aircraft it wanted, or reduce the burden of over-staffing. Some of the private
airlines are run more efficiently and have unveiled plans to expand operations
significantly.
At this critical juncture, does the country need another six
airlines? Can they all survive in a hyper-competitive environment? Are the
Aviation Ministry, the Airports Authority of India, and the State governments
ready to improve the infrastructure and facilities at some of the smaller
airports? Since outgo on aviation turbine fuel and staff constitutes the largest
share of the operational cost of any airline, how are the new entities planning
to manage their finances? No doubt, job opportunities will open up for young men
and women, including qualified commercial pilots who have been without work for
some time now. From the point of view of passengers, more airlines and lower
fares may once again make air travel cheaper and within the reach of the common
person. The Aviation Ministry may say it just issued an NOC for applicants, and
it is up to the promoter to work out the economics of the operations and ensure
that the new airlines remain viable. The Centre has also to take a call on the
norms for allowing private or domestic airlines to fly international routes,
because other than the domestic trunk routes the airlines earn their revenue
from flights overseas. It is also time for the aviation regulator to get
prepared and equipped for the critical task of monitoring the skies and the
operators, as well as their aircraft.
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