AirAsia India makes 134% growth in passenger traffic

Higher capacity deployment coupled with increased frequency on two routes helped budget carrier AirAsia India to make a robust 134 percent growth in passenger traffic as it flew over half-a-million customers in October-December period of 2015. The airline carried a total of 5,08,407 passengers during the period as compared to 2,17,209 passengers flown by AirAsia India in the October-December quarter of calendar year 2014. "AirAsia India posted load factor of 84 percent in Q4 2015, an increase of one per cent with a total of 0.51 million passengers carried (during the period)," the airline said in a statement.

AirAsia India is a joint venture in which Malaysia's AirAsia Bhd holds 49 per cent, Tata Sons Ltd 41 percent and Arun Bhatia of Telestra Tradeplace Pvt Ltd the rest. The airline had commenced operations on June 12, 2014. AirAsia India operated a total of 6,07,680 seats (capacity) during the three months ending December 2015 as against 2,60,280 seats flown by the carrier in the same period of 2014, it said adding the capacity deployment grew 133 percent during the quarter.

According to the airline, it inducted one aircraft in the fleet, which took the total fleet to six Airbus A320s, besides adding Visakhapatnam in the route network during Q4-2015 while frequencies were increased on the Goa and Guwahati routes from New Delhi. Only yesterday, AirAsia Group Chief Executive Officer Tony Fernandes had said that his Indian joint venture airline would add two more planes "shortly and a dozen later" without putting a time line to the induction of these planes. The number of flights operated by the carrier also increased to 3,376 in October-December quarter of 2015 as compared to 1,446 flights in the same period of 2014, a growth of 134 percent growth, it said.