Tim Clark, the head of flag carrier Emirates, said that Indian airlines are missing out on revenues to the tune of $800-900 million due to limited bilateral agreements between India and Dubai.
Clark, while speaking at the CAPA India Aviation Summit, said that the government of Dubai has approached the Indian government to liberalise air travel by easing bilateral air service agreements, but to no avail.
He added that the Dubai has asked India to approve 50,000 extra seats per week between Dubai and India, but the response from the New Delhi has been dismissive till now.
"You can’t expect to grow and not allow others to come in. You’ve got to have an open skies agreement with most. It is such a big market. It is not as if the cake is static. The cake is growing,” Clark said at the event.
ALSO READ: Indian carriers to report $1.6-1.8 billion consolidated loss in FY24: CAPA
India and Dubai permit 66,000 seats per week between the two to be operated by the airlines of the two countries. Dubai wants that to be enhanced because the country's two carriers -- Emirates and FlyDubai-- have together reached that limit.
The debate of increasing airline seats between India and Dubai has been going on for the last five years as a large number of Indian travelers use carriers such as Emirates to transit to Europe and the US.
The last increment in flying rights happened in 2013 when the government agreed to increase it by four times from 13,330 seats to 50,000 seats per week. Hence, these carriers have been pushing for a rise in flying capacity between India and West Asia or the Middle East.
However, Indian carriers fly directly to Europe and the US and are not keen on expanding flying capacity to West Asia, as more flights to transit hubs in the middle east may hit the passenger load factor of their direct flights.
Emirates has a fleet of 262 wide-body planes which are instrumental in flying on long-haul routes above six hours.
The head of Emirates also said that he would have liked to see Air India place a larger order for wide-body aircraft as part of its latest mega order.
"I was concerned that Air India ordered only 70 wide-bodies & not the other way around," Clark further said.
He added that wide-body aircraft play an important part in creating superhubs and have better fuel efficiencies than narrowbodies.
Clark, however, said that despite being separate airlines, there was no rivalry between Emirates and Indian carriers adding that he did not look at Air India as an adversary.
“We’re not here to threaten, we’re here to add value to the Indian economy and the citizens of India by providing a range of products other carriers have not been able to do by operating to destinations where we know the Indian demand is,” he added.
Clark also said that India was a big talent pool for the likes of Emirates and that the country's growing aviation market will be beneficial for the world in the future. He added that nearly 20 percent of Emirates staff was made up of Indian citizens.
Clark also said that he is open to working with the Indian government to create a global aviation hub.
"If anybody wants to talk to me about how you establish an international hub, I'll bring it on, I don't mind. Integration of customs, immigration, police, airport authorities," the Emirates head said.
He also added that the current climate of high airfares is unlikely to change anytime soon. Clark said that customers are willing to pay more for air travel, especially long-haul air travel.
"For every passenger that flies today and every seat we offer, there are 5 people to buy it. People are prepared to pay for services," Clark said.
Discover the latest Business News, Sensex, and Nifty updates. Obtain Personal Finance insights, tax queries, and expert opinions on Moneycontrol or download the Moneycontrol App to stay updated!
