Services to smaller cities not feasible: Big players to Maharashtra government

After failing to find much success in connecting smaller cities of the state with Mumbai through non-scheduled operators, the BJP-led government has started exploring the possibility of involving scheduled operators. While it had called a meeting of all such domestic airlines late last month, the carriers, on their part, turned down the request, politely stating that the idea was not feasible.


Scheduled operators are those carriers whose schedules are fixed and approved by aviation regulator The Directorate General of Civil Aviation (DGCA) well in advance. It includes all the general aviation airlines like Air India, Jet Airways, Spicejet, Indigo, Vistara, etc. As far as these operators are concerned, a passenger can therefore book his/her tickets and fly at a scheduled time, day and location.

However, non-scheduled operators are those airlines that do not have a scheduled timetable or plan. These aircraft fly as and when the demand arises from clients or passengers. Quite a handful of non-scheduled airlines had approached the state government in near past to allow them to start services smaller cities. However, the talks never materialised due to a host of issues.
05/03/16 Shahkar Abidi/Daily News & Analysis