69615951 opportunity analysis in indian aviation industry
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CONTENTS
ABSTRACT 1
INTRODUCTION 2
LITERATURE REVIEW 4
MAJOR PRIVATE PLAYERS 15
SWOT ANALYSIS OF THE INDIAN AVIATION INDUSTRY 30
CONCLUSION 33
RECOMMENDATIONS 34
BIBLIOGRAPHY 35
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ABSTRACT
The aviation industry is currently undergoing radical changes in how it operates. The
discount airlines are doing okay, but no airline these days can claim to be break the sound
barrier. The fuel costs are prohibitive and even if all the airlines raise fares, there is a ticket
price where much of the flying public will just stop flying. And this can be seen as many
airlines are retiring their less efficient aircraft and thus, taking capacity out of the market.
The supply and number of airliners is being reduced out of prudent business decisions to cut
non-profitable routes.
The major network carriers are still suffering because the new LCC business model took
away a chunk of customers. Some of these customers could still be lured back by the network
carriers if the cost difference reduces. There will always be a floating population of
customers who will use both kinds of service, as their needs change or as their income
increase. However, each will also have their very loyal segment of customers. The network
carriers will have those business customers who always require the services offered by them.
The successful private airlines have ensured that the basic elements of punctuality, safety,
baggage handling, housekeeping and ease of booking have been in place. In fact, airlines
such as Southwest, Easy Jet and Ryan Air have achieved even greater degrees of punctuality
and less number of flight cancellations than the network carriers.
The basic aim of the study is to analyze the opportunity analysis in Aviation Industry. The
study also examine the changes which are required in the domestic airlines and the changes
with are coming up in the domestic airlines to match the growing competition from the private
airlines.
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INTRODUCTION
India is witnessing a boom in passenger and cargo traffic with 15% growth in passenger
traffic recorded in 2010-11 at 142 mn passengers. Considering the growth in Indian economy
and the need to develop aviation infrastructure, the industry requires investments worth 30
billion dollars (about Rs 135,000 crore) are required in the next 15 years.
The 9th largest aviation market in the world is India. Taking the help of the statistics from theMinistry of Civil Aviation, approximately 29.8 million passengers traveled to/from India in2008, showing a surge of 30% from 2007. The prediction stated that international passengerswill touch 50 million by 2015. More opportunities in the aviation industry in India are likelyto make way for about 69 foreign airlines from 49 countries.
Passengers carried by domestic airlines during January - May 2011 were 24.5 million asagainst 21 million during the corresponding period of previous year thereby registering agrowth of 17.6 per cent, according to the latest data released by the Directorate General of Civil Aviation (DGCA). For the first time, domestic traffic in a month has registered 5.5million passengers carried with three airlines viz. Jet Airways, Kingfisher Airlines andIndiGo carrying more than 1 million passengers each in May 2011.
Private carriers are anticipated to post a combined profit of US$ 350 – 400 million for thefiscal 2011-12, Centre for Asia Pacific Aviation (CAPA) India reported in its 2011-12Aviation Industry outlook. Domestic capacity is also projected to grow by 12-14 per cent for the assessment period.
Then in the airline manufacturing industry we have Boeing vs. Airbus. Boeing has bet on
new carbon composite aircraft making them lighter and thus much more efficient, while their
arch enemy and market rival Airbus is going for the world's largest aircraft so they can carry
more passengers on a single flight thus, cutting the cost per passenger. Both strategies seem
to be working as orders for the A380 Airbus and 787 are strong.
The discount airlines are doing okay, but no airline these days can claim to be break the
sound barrier. The fuel costs are prohibitive and even if all the airlines raise fares, there is a
ticket price where much of the flying public will just stop flying. And this can be seen as
many airlines are retiring their less efficient aircraft and thus, taking capacity out of the
market. The supply and number of airliners is being reduced out of prudent business
decisions to cut non-profitable routes.
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These two business models serve two different segments of customers and can, therefore,
exist simultaneously. The major network carriers are still suffering because the new LCC
business model took away a chunk of customers. Some of these customers could still be lured
back by the network carriers if the cost difference reduces. There will always be a floating population of customers who will use both kinds of service, as their needs change or as their
income increase. However, each will also have their very loyal segment of customers. The
network carriers will have those business customers who always require the services offered
by them. The LCCs too will have their niche customers who are the new segment of air
travelers they created-namely small businessmen and leisure travel customers.
Notwithstanding that, the LCC business is certainly set to grow more than that of the network
carriers and, hence, gain a higher market share.
The successful private airlines have ensured that the basic elements of punctuality, safety,
baggage handling, housekeeping and ease of booking have been in place. In fact, airlines
such as Southwest, Easy Jet and Ryan Air have achieved even greater degrees of punctuality
and less number of flight cancellations than the network carriers.
In India, Kingfisher and Spice Jet are succeeding in pulling human resources like Pilots,
Engineers and Technicians from network carriers such as Air Sahara, Jet Airways and Indian
Airlines. Sometimes, resignations of pilots in large number have created even cancellations
of flight. This situations will be more complicated when some more private players like Go
Air, Indigo will take off in the civil aviation industry in India.The cost of labor again
contributes a major portion to the LCCs cost advantage and this is, therefore, likely to reduce
over time.
This cost creep at LCCs due to the above, as well as the cost reductions the network carriers
have achieved and are targeting for the future, have gradually reduced the difference between
network carriers and LCCs. Even in other aspects such as the airports they use, and the
services and frills offered and not offered, these models have started having some
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similarities. Some of the bigger LCCs also have started offering limited connections, moving
towards the hub and spoke model of the network carriers.
Thus its seems as if there is some kind of convergence in the two basic models. How far
these models converge and how much they retain their basic differences is yet to be seen.
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LITERATURE REVIEW
The Indian Civil Aviation Industry
The history of Indian Aviation Industry dated back to the early 1930s, when one of the
leading Indian business houses, the Tatas, established Tata Airlines. There was limited
activity in the sector over the next two decades despite eight more private companies entering
the airline industry. In 1953, the Air Corporation Act came into force, and all the assets of the
then existing nine airline companies were transferred to two companies- Indian Airlines
Corporation (IA) and Air India International (Air India). While Air India offered
international air services, IA offered domestic services. The Air Corporation Act 1953
prohibited any person or company to operate any scheduled air transport services from, to or
across India. Therefore, the two corporations enjoyed a monopoly status in the scheduled air
transport services market. In 1962, Air India International was renamed as Air India Limited.
In 1986, private airlines were allowed to operate chartered and non-scheduled services under
an ‘Air Taxi’ scheme. The scheme was introduced to boost tourism and augment domestic air
services. The carriers were, however, not allowed to publish time schedules or issue tickets to
passengers. The government’s aviation policy was progressively liberalized in the early
1990’s. In 1993, the Air corporation Act 1953 was abolished, which put an end to the
monopoly of IA and Air India in the scheduled air transport services market. After the
abolition of the act, there was a considerable change in the Indian government’s aviation
policy.
From March 1994, the market was opened to any company that fulfilled the statutory
requirements of scheduled airline services. The government approved eight private carriers to
start domestic operations. They were Jet Airways, Air Sahara, Indian International, Archana
Airways, East West Airlines, NEPC Airlines, Modiluft and Damania Airways. While Indian
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International was the first licensee after the open skies policy came into force, East West was
the first scheduled airlines to take off from the ground.
In 1995, the Airports Authority of India (AAI) was formed after the merger of the
National Airports Authority (NAA) and the International Airport Authority of India (IAAI).
The AAI offered infrastructure facilities to all airlines. There were five international airports-
Delhi, Mumbai, Kolkata, Chennai and Thiruvananthapuram- for scheduled international o
perations by Indian and foreign carriers.
By late 2000, however, most private players went out of business after incurring
heavy losses. The reasons included lack of experience in the aviation field, inadequate
planning and poor promoter support. According to analysts, none of the private carriers had
the staying power or the professional expertise required for the aviation industry.
As a result, by mid 2001, only Jet Airways(JA) and Sahara managed to stay afloat
among the private carriers. In fact, they went step ahead by grabbing a major market share
from Indian Airlines, which had been enjoying a monopoly. By mid 2001, JA commanded
42% of the domestic market and Sahara claimed for 13% leaving and 39% for Indian
Airlines as per financial year 2003-04.
The September 11, 2001, terrorist attacks in the US affected the global airline
industry. Reportedly, the industry suffered a loss of 418 bn and about 400,000 aviation
related jobs were lost. However, the Indian aviation industry was not badly hit by attack.
In early 2003, the Indian government expressed concerns that the civil aviation
industry remained a part-monopoly, with only three players. To introduce more reforms, in
August 2003, the government established a committee under the chairmanship of Naresh
Chandra, former cabinet secretary, to prepare a road map for a civil aviation policy. The
committee recommended that the foreign direct investment limit in the domestic civil
aviation sector should be increased to 49% from the permitted 40%, which the government
accepted. The government also stressed the need for making air travel more affordable. The
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recommendations were accepted and excise duty on Aviation Turbine Fuel (ATF) was cut to
8% from 16%. The government also did away with the 15% inland air travel tax (IATT).
By August 2006, the government started reviewing other guidelines pertaining to the aviation
sector including the ban on financial arrangements with foreign airlines for lease finance, hire
purchase and other loan arrangements. The existing policy prevented any such financing
arrangements. Industry analysts realized that the government was clear in its intention of
bringing air travel within the reach of the common man. Taking advantage of liberal policies,
Air Deccan started operating in short-haul routes in all over India.
Aiming to compete with their rivals in the international market, the fast-growing Indian
airlines are looking at global platforms to widen their overseas presence.
In 2008 the two Indian international carriers, Air India and Jet Airways, currently have less
than 25% share in the long-haul market to and from the country. With the third carrier
Kingfisher Airlines joining the ranks this month, the Indian aviation scenario is all set to
change.
Kingfisher Airlines, which is starting its international operations on September 3 with a
Bangalore-London flight, is considering options to join the SkyTeam Alliance led by Air
France-KLM and Delta Airlines of the US. The national carrier, Air India, has already joined
the Star Alliance, the world's largest airlines consortium led by Lufthansa and Singapore
Airlines.
Mumbai-based Jet Airways could eventually become the Indian partner of the Oneworld
Alliance, led by British Airways and American Airlines, according to industry sources.
Under such global alliances, airlines agree to co-operate, tie up to provide better connectivity
to international passengers, share terminals as well as expertise in back-end operations.
Indian airlines are aiming for a greater presence in the lucrative international market with the
ambition of taking market share from the large number of international carriers such as
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Singapore Airlines, Emirates, Lufthansa and British Airways, which dominate international
traffic to and from India.
Kingfisher executives said that it would be “most logical” for the airline to eventually join
the SkyTeam alliance, given the growing links with the Air France-KLM. It is a bit early to
comment on our global alliance plans, but we are already looking at developing synergies
with Air France-KLM, which are providing back-end technical support in London to our
aircraft. Kingfisher has already entered into a maintenance and technical support pact with
Air France-KLM for its wide bodied aircraft used in international operations.
Meanwhile, Jet Airways is currently evaluating our options. They have not decided to join
any alliance as of now. There are no specific time frames. The airline industry is going
through a phase of consolidation and airline groupings could also possibly change in the
immediate future. The recent example being Continental exiting the SkyTeam and joining
Star Alliance.
Jet Airways currently has frequent-flier programme partnerships with 16 carriers and has
codeshare partnerships with Qantas, American Airlines, Brussels Airlines, Etihad Airways
and Air Canada.
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COMPETITIVE SCENARIO
Change is the only constant in aviation these days. Just as the industry posted its first profit
since 2000 — $5.6 billion last year — oil prices rose to historic levels, and a potential
economic downturn threatens revenues.
At one point, Asia seemed immune to many of the woes of the industry. Aviation supports
10.5 million jobs across Asia Pacific. And that, in turn, supports $807 billion in business.
Traffic in the region is still growing at breakneck speed. By 2010, Asia will be the largest
single market for aviation.
Growth brings challenges and responsibilities. The first challenge is a healthy one —
competition. Everyone wants a piece of the pie. Look at the Middle-East, which is
positioning itself as a global air hub. Already, Dubai handles nearly as much traffic as
Changi. And with 159 destinations, it is connected to 37 per cent more destinations. Its
proposed super airport at Jebel Ali will be the world’s biggest, handling up to 140 million
passengers a year.
The second challenge is the supply of skilled personnel. To operate the 16,000 new aircraft
that will be required to meet demand in 2020, 17,000 new pilots must be trained each year.
That is 40,000 more than current training capacity.
And the third challenge is declining profitability. Capacity expansion of nearly 40 per cent in
the region saw absolute profitability go from $1.7 billion in 2002 to an estimated $900
million last year. Margins fell from 4 per cent to less than 1 per cent over the same period.
Innovation and change
Challenges are opportunities for innovation and change. I see the biggest opportunities in the
areas of liberalisation, security and environment.
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The Asian decision to liberalise traffic between capital cities in 2008 moves airlines towards
the same commercial freedoms that other businesses take for granted. The archaic bilateral
system requires government to negotiate international markets and keeps the industry
fragmented. The largest airline represents only 5 per cent of total traffic. And in Asia 13
airlines compete to provide just 50 per cent of the market.
Europe has proved that cross-border consolidation is politically acceptable. And the
bottomline numbers of Lufthansa, Swiss and Air France-KLM show that it can be profitable
too.
If Asia acts as a region, it can balance the traditional leadership of the US and Europe. The
failure of last year’s US-EU open skies agreement to address ownership put the baton of
industry leadership up for grabs. It is time for Asia to be bolder and explore new ways of
doing business.
It could develop a new model for the relationship between industry and government that
allows the air transport industry to deliver even greater economic benefits. Perhaps it could
even develop an institution for regional co-ordination of air policy issues, so that Asia is as
strong in building the future of our industry as it is in building great airlines and airports.
Security is a ready-made project for regional coordination. Six years after 9/11, the industry
is more secure. But the system remains an unco-ordinated mess. We have not harmonised
measures across borders. Shoes on or off? Laptop in or out? Belt and coat on or off? The
answers are different at every airport. What message does that send to passengers?
Singapore signed an agreement with the EU to harmonise the security of duty-free items.
Good job. Now we need to find a leadership method to turn this into a regional solution that
is a building block for global harmonisation.
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Environment
Environment is another global issue in need of a global solution. Aviation is 2 per cent of
global carbon emissions. By 2020 our target is to improve global fuel efficiency by 25 per
cent to limit our impact on climate change. We have a four pillar strategy to achieve it:
investment in technology, efficient operations and effective infrastructure with positive
economic incentives to achieve these.
Beyond that, our vision is for carbon neutral growth, leading to a carbon-free future. There is
no ready-made roadmap to achieve this. But I am confident. An industry that went from the
Wright Brothers to the jet age in 50 years will be able to achieve great things.
Governments must be on board with the vision. And there is plenty that can be done in Asia,
from greater harmonisation of air traffic management, to setting benchmarks for air traffic
efficiency and financial support for research into alternative fuels and radical aircraft design.
I have proof that great ideas can change an industry quickly. By May 31, 2008, we will
complete the conversion of the world to electronic ticketing. The project began in Singapore
and will take exactly four years, measured with goals and targets.
Asia is our industry’s present and its future. Running an airline is a tough business, and Asia
has done well. Now we are at a turning point. Even as China and India continue to be
markets of enormous potential, in only a few years this region will already be our industry’s
largest single market.
The race for market share and growth has been won. Now we need a unique race for
leadership that involves key players from fast developing China and India, to more traditional
players like Japan, Singapore, or Australia and everyone in-between.
Nobody holds a patent on innovation. What is needed is the leadership vision to turn
innovation into results: building an industry that is even safer and more secure; delivering an
industry that is financially sound and efficient by rethinking our outdated regulatory
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framework; and acting locally to ensure that aviation is a global benchmark for
environmental responsibility.
ROLE OF GOVERNMENT
There is no justification to subsidise fuel costs but reducing the gap between domestic and
international prices would bring costs down by about 30 per cent, reduce break-even loads,
lead to competitive pricing and increase demand. However, the government should look at
the flip side before acting
The Indian airline industry is projected to lose $2 billion this fiscal. The airlines have been
quick to blame spiralling fuel costs and have, with the support of the Civil Aviation Minister,
Mr Praful Patel, sought relief from the government to help the industry survive. The
Government has set up a committee to investigate this demand. But should the Government
intervene?
To answer this question, we need to investigate the drivers of performance in the airline
industry. While the demand for civil aviation in India historically grew in line with GDP
growth, the inflection point in its growth occurred around 2003, with the launch of Air
Deccan, followed by other discount carriers such as SpiceJet, GoAir and IndiGo.
Between 2003 and 2008, the demand for civil aviation services (as measured by domestic
passengers carried) grew at a compounded rate in excess of 30 per cent.
Evidence suggests that this demand growth came as a result of lower fares, release of pent-up
demand, shift of upper-class rail travellers to air for journeys of 750 km and more, the
upwardly mobile aspirations of India’s middle class, and better connectivity.
Recent developments such as the negative growth rate of the airline industry in the most
recent quarter (after airlines increased fares sharply) only underline the steep price elasticity
of demand for civil aviation services.
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Profitability
However, even during the peak growth phase, India’s domestic airlines were not profitable.
(In fact, in 2006-07, the latest year for which comparable figures are available, only one
domestic airline, Paramount Airways, reported operating profits.) There were several reasons
for this.
Some were outside the direct control of the airlines — crowded infrastructure (resulting in
congestion in the air and on the ground), shortage of qualified pilots and maintenance
engineers, leading to inflated compensation packages, route guidelines that necessitated
services on uneconomical routes, and high tariffs on fuel, all these strained the financial
performance of the airline industry.
On the other hand, the airlines themselves have to shoulder a part of the blame. Even before
fuel prices went up, at the fares charged by discount carriers, the break-even load was well in
excess of 80 per cent (and often closer to 90 per cent). Actual industry-wide load factors
hovered around 70 per cent.
The villain was capacity — as demand increased, airline capacity soared as well, preventing
increases in the load factor of individual airlines. And, in an industry with a perishable
product and high fixed costs, the overhang of increased capacity kept prices low.
The low fares charged by discount carriers affected full-service carriers as well, leading them
to offer 75 per cent of their seats at prices below the “normal” fares. To make matters worse,
full-service airlines Jet and Kingfisher were also making major investments on international
expansion and domestic brand-building respectively. At the same time, it is clear that the
doubling of fuel costs within a year’s time has overshadowed all the other problems faced by
the industry.
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The country’s most efficient discount carrier, SpiceJet, which was profitable in Q1 FY20010,
is today deeply in the red. Following the increase in fuel costs, the break-even load factor of
the largest domestic carrier Jet Airways has increased from about 70 per cent to 90 per cent,
while its capacity utilisation remains at around 72 per cent.
What govt can do
While there is no justification or need to subsidise fuel costs for the airline industry, current
handling fees imposed by the oil companies and taxes imposed by the Centre and the States
have resulted in pushing fuel prices as much as 70 per cent higher than international
benchmarks.
Reduction of this gap to a more reasonable figure (say, a maximum of 20 per cent) would
bring down fuel costs by about 30 per cent, reduce break-even loads, result in more
competitive pricing and a corresponding increase in demand, and improve the airlines’
viability. A concern of the government would be whether the benefit of lower costs would
translate into customer benefits in terms of lower prices or simply be pocketed by the
airlines. The former is more likely.
Though there has been consolidation in the airline industry, it is still a competitive industry.
The five major players — Jet + JetLite; Kingfisher + Deccan, Air India, SpiceJet and IndiGo
— are under different ownership, and have different competitive strategies, business models,
and cost structures. There is no clear “industry leader”, under whose umbrella other carriers
might shelter. Though there have been some efforts to create a floor price across the industry
through the adoption of common fuel surcharges, efficient discount carriers such as IndiGo
and SpiceJet continue to offer significantly lower total fares. This is because they have
substantially lower costs than the full-service carriers and it makes business sense for them to
convert this cost advantage into lower prices.
There is as much of a competition between formats (full service vs discount) as between
carriers, and the fundamental assumptions of these formats are different. Under these
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conditions, sustained cartelisation is not sustainable, and price-based competition will ensure
that the benefits of lower costs are passed on to consumers.
The flip side
At the same time, there are three arguments against reducing the cost structure for airlines by
lowering the taxes and duties on ATF. One is on the grounds of environmental sustainability.
The airline industry is already being targeted globally for its large carbon footprint. It could
be argued that rapid growth of the Indian airline industry would be against the long-term
ecological interests of the country and the world.
The second is on questionable benefits to the larger economy — while before the entry of the
discount carriers, business travellers comprised more than 80 per cent of the users of airline
services, the boom in the use of airline services was driven by travel for either leisure or
“visiting friends and relatives”, leading to a decline in the proportion of business travellers to
around two-thirds. Finally there is the issue of lost welfare due to foregone tax revenues by
the State and Central governments. The Government must weigh these costs in taking a
decision on a bailout plan for the airline industry.
Role of Aviation Industry in India GDP
The Role of Aviation Industry in India GDP in the past few years has been phenomenal inall respects. The Aviation Industry in India is the most rapidly growing aviation sector of theworld. With the rise in the economy of the country and followed by the liberalization in theaviation sector, the Aviation Industry in India went through a complete transformation in therecent period.
With the entry of the private operators in this sector and the huge cut in air prices, air
travel in India were popularized
On February 18, 1911, the first commercial flight was made from Allahabad to Naini by aFrench pilot named Monseigneur Piguet
The growth in the Indian economy has increased the Gross Domestic Product above8% and this high growth rate will be sustained for a good number of years
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Air traffic has grown enormously and expected to have a growth which would beabove 25% in the travel segment
In the present scenario around 12 domestic airlines and above 60 international airlinesare operating in India
With the growth in the economy and stability of the country India has become one of the preferred locations for the trade and commerce activities
The growth of airlines traffic in Aviation Industry in India is almost four times aboveinternational average
Aviation Industry in India have placed the biggest order for aircrafts globally
Aviation Industry in India holds around 69% of the total share of the airlines traffic inthe region of South Asia
Initializing privatization in the airport activities
Modernization of the airlines fleet to handle the pressure of competition in the aviationindustry
Rapid expansion plans for the major airports for the increased flow of air traffic
Immense development for the growing Regional Airports
The Reserve Bank of India (RBI) announced that foreign institutional investors might haveshareholdings more than the limited 49% in the domestic sector.
.
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MAJOR PRIVATE PLAYERS
Life seems to have cruised a full circle in the India’s aviation industry. Almost a decade after
a dozen-odd carriers took to the Indian skies and then quietly folded up, a whole new
generation of entrepreneurs- nine at last count-are now preparing to try their hand at doing
business 30000 feet up in the sky.
Albeit this time round, a good chunk of these new entrants want to take the frills out of flying
and are aiming to provide budget air travel – with fares that are about 30% lower than those
of the existing full service carriers –in the Indian skies.
Market share statistics for May 2011 indicates a neck-to-neck tiff between Kingfisher andIndiGo with 20 and 19.9 per cent of market share respectively. However, if the figures for JetAirways (18.5 per cent) and JetLite (7.6 per cent) are combined, then the Jet Airways groupof airlines leads with 26.1 per cent of the market. The remaining market shares belong to Air India (13.2 per cent), Spicejet (14.2 per cent) and GoAir (6.6 per cent).
JET AIRWAYS
Jet Airways is an airline based in Mumbai, India. It is the country's second-largest
international airline after Air India and the largest domestic airline. It operates over 400 daily
flights to 62 destinations. Its primary base is Mumbai's Chhatrapati Shivaji Airport with
secondary hubs at Bangalore, Brussels, Chennai, Delhi, Hyderabad, Kolkata and Pune.
In July 2008, it was honored as the world's best long-haul airline after Singapore Airlines. In
a poll conducted in September 2008, it was voted as the world's seventh best airline overall.
Jet Airways has also won an award for the quality of its catering. According to March 2008
figures, Jet Airways share of India's domestic aviation market stood at 29.8%, including its
low-cost subsidiary JetLite's share of 7.1%, making it the largest airline in India. However,
the airline faces competition from other domestic carriers like Kingfisher Airlines, SpiceJet
and IndiGo Airlines.
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HISTORY
Jet Airways was incorporated as an air taxi operator on 1 April 1992. It started commercial
airline operations on 5 May 1993 with a fleet of 4 Boeing 737-300 aircraft. In January 1994,
a change in the law enabled Jet Airways to apply for scheduled airline status, which was
granted on 4 January 1995. It began international operations to Sri Lanka in March 2004.
While the company is listed on the Bombay Stock Exchange, 80% of its stock is controlled
by Naresh Goyal (through his ownership of Jet’s parent company, Tailwinds, and has 10,017
employees.
Naresh Goyal, who already owned Jetair (Private) Limited, which provided sales and
marketing for foreign airlines in India, set up Jet Airways as a full-service scheduled airline
to compete against state-owned Indian Airlines. Indian Airlines had enjoyed a monopoly in
the domestic market between 1953, when all major Indian air transport providers were
nationalised under the Air Corporations Act (1953), and January 1994, when the Air
Corporations Act was repealed, following which Jet Airways received scheduled airline
status.
Jet Airways Boeing 777-300ER in the airline's new color scheme in 2007Jet Airways and
Air Sahara were the only private airlines to survive the Indian business downturn of the early
1990s. In January 2006, Jet Airways announced that it would buy Air Sahara for US$500
million in an all-cash deal, making it the biggest takeover in Indian aviation history. The
resulting airline would have been the country's largest[8] but the deal fell through in June
2006.
On 12 April 2007, Jet Airways agreed to buy out Air Sahara for 14.5 billion rupees (US$340
million). Air Sahara was renamed JetLite, and was marketed between a low-cost carrier and a
full service airline. In August 2008, Jet Airways announced its plans to completely integrate
JetLite into Jet Airways.
Brand Ownership
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Jet Airways does not own its brand. The brand is owned by Jetair Enterprises Ltd., a separate
company substantially owned by Naresh Goyal, which licenses the brand to the airline in
return for an annual payment. This arrangement is very similar to the terms governing the use
of the "easy" brand by the easyJet Airline Company Limited (the name under which easyJet
has been incorporated). Under the aforesaid arrangement, Sir Stelios Haji-Ioannou, the
founder and largest individual shareholder of easyJet Airline Co. Ltd. has sole ownership of
the "easy" brand and licenses it to that airline for a specified payment. This kind of
arrangement is of vital importance should the concerned airlines become the subject of a
hostile takeover bid because the bidder[s] will not automatically acquire ownership of their
takeover target's brand and without access to the brand the takeover target will be less
valuable.
Destinations
Jet Airways serves 62 destinations within India. In addition to destinations across India and
other parts of the Indian subcontinent (Colombo, Dhaka, Kathmandu), Jet Airways expanded
international operations to include destinations in Asia (Bangkok, Hong Kong, Kuala
Lumpur, Shanghai, Singapore), Europe (Brussels, London), the Middle East (Abu Dhabi,
Dubai , Bahrain, Doha, Kuwait, Muscat) and North America (New York, Newark, San
Francisco, Toronto). By July 2007, it was connecting India with over 50 international
destinations
Jet Airways operates a scissors-hub in Brussels, with four Indian cities (Bengaluru, Chennai,
Delhi, Mumbai) connected to three North American cities (New York, Newark, Toronto).
In-Flight Services
Indian cuisine meal served onboard domestic Jet Airways flight.With the arrival of its new
Boeing 777-300ER and Airbus A330-200 aircraft, Jet Airways has introduced a new cabin
with upgraded seats in all classes. The Boeing 777-300ER aircraft has three classes of
service: First, Première (Business), and Economy. The Airbus A330-200 aircraft have two
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classes: Première and Economy. All A330-200 and B777-300ER aircraft have this feature.
B737 aircraft are configured differently. Jet Airways has a three-star rated Business and First
Class, and is in the top twenty-five business classes reviewed by Skytrax. Economy class has
been reviewed as a three-star product by Skytrax.
First Class
First class is available on all Boeing 777-300ER aircraft. All seats convert to a fully-flat bed,
similar to Singapore Airlines suites but smaller. It was the second airline in the world to have
private suites. (Emirates Airline were first, introducing the private suites in 2003 on their
Airbus A340-500s). All seats have a 15-inch widescreen LCD monitor with audio-video on-
demand (AVOD), in seat power supply, and USB ports etc. Jet Airways is the second airline
in India to have fully-enclosed first class suites on its aircraft; each suite has a closeable door,
making for a private compartment. It is the ninth-best first class in the world as conducted by
Skytrax. The only airlines that surpass Jet in first class are Singapore Airlines and Emirates
Airline.
Boeing 777-300ER Première class seats.
Première Class
Première Class (Business Class) on the Airbus A330-200 and Boeing 777-300ER
international fleet has a fully-flat bed with AVOD entertainment. Seats are configured in a
herringbone pattern (1-2-1 on the Boeing 777, and 1-1-1 on the Airbus A330), with each seat
offering direct access to the aisle. USB ports and in-seat laptop power are provided. Mood
lighting is installed on the A330-200 and B777-300ER, with light schemes corresponding to
the time of day and flight position.
On the short-haul/domestic Boeing 737, all new aircraft are equipped with AVOD. All seats
are standard recliner business-class seats with a few newer aircraft with electronic recline and
massager.
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Economy Class
Economy class on the Boeing 777-300ER, Boeing 737, and A330-200 has 32-inch seat pitch.
All 777/A330, as well as some Boeing 737 aircraft, have a touch screen AVOD system. Seats
on the 777/A330 have a "hammock-style" net footrest. The cabin is configured in 3-3-3
abreast on the 777, 2-4-2 on the A330, and 3-3 in the 737.
KINGFISHER
Kingfisher Airlines Limited is an airline based in Bangalore, India. It operates 218 flights a
day and has a network of 38 destinations, with plans for regional and long-haul international
services. Its main bases are Bengaluru International Airport, Chhatrapati Shivaji International
Airport, Rajiv Gandhi International Airport and Indira Gandhi International Airport.
Kingfisher Airlines, through one of its holding companies United Breweries Group, has
acquired 26% stake in the budget airline Air Deccan and has option to buy further of 20%
stake from the secondary sector.
Kingfisher is one of six airlines in the world to have a five-star rating from Skytrax, along
with Asiana Airlines, Malaysia Airlines, Qatar Airways, Singapore Airlines and Cathay
Pacific Airways.
Destinations
Kingfisher Airlines currently operates only a domestic network across India. It has plans to
start international services to North America using Airbus A340-500 aircraft. Other
destinations in consideration for future expansion include East Midlands, London, Sydney,
San Francisco, Singapore, Hong Kong, Vancouver, Kuala Lumpur and Bangkok from its
Bengaluru hub.
The airline plans to begin operations from London Heathrow to Bengaluru and Mumbai,
followed by flights from Bengaluru to San Fransico and New York by late 2008. Further into
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the future, international services will possibly be expanded to the Middle-East, East Asia, Sri
lanka and Pakistan, starting with the Bengaluru to Singapore sector. The airline will use the
Bengaluru International Airport as its main international hub
Kingfisher Airlines fleet currently consists of the ATR 72,Airbus A320 Family for
domestic/short haul services. Deliveries of the Airbus A330-200 and Airbus A340-500 for
international services are expected sometime in the future. The Kingfisher Airlines fleet
consists of the following aircraft as of 6th July 2008:
Kingfisher Airlines Fleet
Aircraft Total
Passengers(Kingfisher
First/Kingfisher
Class)
Routes Notes
ATR 72-500
18(17 Orders)
66 (0/66)Domestic ShortHaul
Pratt & Whitney PW127FEngines
AirbusA319-100
3(1 Order)
144 (0/144)Short to MediumHaul
IAE V2500 Engines
AirbusA319-100CJ
1 Corporate JetShort to MediumHaul
Private Aircraft, Not Usedfor Commercial Operations
AirbusA320-200
13(49 Orders)
174 (0/174)134 (20/114)
Short to MediumHaul
IAE V2500 Engines
AirbusA321-200
8199 (0/199)151 (32/119)
Short to MediumHaul
IAE V2500 Engines
AirbusA330-200
2(13 Orders)
217 (30/187)Medium to LongHaul
Pratt & Whitney PW4168A Engines
AirbusA340-500
(8 orders)Extended LongHaul
Rolls Royce Trent 556 Engines,2 A340s being solddue to rising Fuel Prices
AirbusA350-800
(20 Orders)(10Options)
Extended LongHaul
Rolls Royce Trent XWB Engines
AirbusA380-800
(5 Orders)(5 Options)
Long Haul Entry into service: 2010
Total 45
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Kingfisher Airlines has an average fleet age of 1.7 years as at March 2008. The airline began
operation with entirely new aircraft. On 18 February 2005, Kingfisher Airlines signed a
contract with Airbus for three Airbus A319 aircraft, adding to the 10 Airbus A320 aircraft
(plus 20 options) ordered in January 2005. The first of the A319s will be delivered in
December 2005, complementing the A320s on routes to smaller cities in India.
The Airbus A380 during its World Tour flight 2006-2007. On 15 June 2005, Kingfisher
announced orders for the Airbus A380. It placed orders for five A380s, five Airbus A350-
800 aircraft and five Airbus A330-200 aircraft. Delivery of the A330s is due to start in late
2007, followed by the A380s in 2010 and the A350s in 2012.
On 20 November 2005, at the Dubai Air Show, Kingfisher Airlines announced that it would
be buying 20 ATR 72-500s (plus 15 options). The deal is estimated to be worth $500 million
with the deliveries starting from March 2006. The last of the 20 planes would be handed over
to Kingfisher Airlines by 2008. The first aircraft from that order was delivered to the airlines
on March 31, 2006.
On 21 November 2005, at the same air show, Kingfisher Airlines placed an order to acquire
30 more A320s in a deal estimated to be worth $2 billion. Engine-making joint venture
International Aero Engines will supply the engines for the planes. Deliveries for the planes
are expected to start from 2008.
On 13 January 2006 an Airbus A319 of Kingfisher Airlines was the first aircraft in that class
to land on the short older runway at Mangalore Jet Airways has been operating to old
Manglore much before since 1998 with a bigger Boeing 737-400. On the 24 April 2006,
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Kingfisher signed a contract for five Airbus A340-500 HGWs. The airline plans to use this
for its Bangalore-San Francisco . Delivery is expected for end 2008
Kingfisher has sold two Airbus A321s to Pegasus Aviation Finance in a sale and lease-back
deal. Pegasus says in a statement that the two newly-built A321-200s that are being prepared
for delivery to Kingfisher will be the first of the stretched A320-family variant in India.
Kingfisher already leases one A320 from Pegasus. An A380 of registration F-WWOW
arrived on 6 May 2007 in New Delhi and in Mumbai two days later as part of Kingfisher's
second anniversary celebrations.
On 20 June 2007, Kingfisher airlines announced that it will buy Airbus aircraft including an
extra 15 A350-800 XWB aircraft. The order also includes five four-engine A340-500 planes,
10 A330-200 wide-body models and 20 single-aisle A320-family jets. The order is worth a
total of $7.2 billion at list prices. Kingfisher is also operating its A340-500 from August
2008 and will offer non-stop flight between India and the US.
SPICEJET
SpiceJet is a low-cost airline based in New Delhi, India. It began service in May 2005 and by
2008, it was India's second-largest low-cost airline in terms of market share. SpiceJet was
voted as the best low-cost airline in South Asia and Central Asia region by Skytrax in 2007.
Rising fuel costs and increasing competition resulted in SpiceJet posting a loss in the first
quarter of 2008-09. In August 2008, SpiceJet announced plans to raise US$100 million
through foreign investment.
History
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SpiceJet was earlier known as Royal Airways, a reincarnation of ModiLuft. it was promoted
by Ajay Singh, Sanjay Malhotra and the Kansagra family. SpiceJet marked its entry in
service with Rs. 99 fares for the first 99 days, with 9000 seats available at this rate. This deal
was followed it up with a Rs. 999 promotional scheme on select routes. Their marketing
theme "offering low 'everyday spicy fares' and great guest services to price conscious
travelers. Their aim is to compete with the Indian Railways passengers travelling in AC
coaches.
On July 15, 2008 Billionaire Wilbur Ross suggested he would invest $80 million (about Rs
345 crore) in the low cost airline. The board of directors of SpiceJet accepted an offer in-
principle from the US-based PE firm that would make available about Rs 345 crore to
SpiceJet, a joint statement issued by SpiceJet and WL Ross & Co.
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COMPETITIVE STRATEGIES
The pioneer among LCCs-Southwest Airlines-was started in 1971. It operated from Dallas
and offered air services between Dallas, Housten and San Antonio. Over the next years it
covered more towns in Texas carrying 5 Million passengers in 1977.
Southwest used its lower costs from its point to point (no hub and spokes model for
connectivity), “no frills” service business model to offer lower prices and create a larger
market for air travel between these towns.
By 2004, southwest had returned its 31st consecutive year of profitability, flying more than 65
million passengers a year to 59 cities across America.
In Europe, Easy Jet and Ryan Air adopted this no frills discount airline model successfully
when Europe’s skies were deregulated in the nineties. As of 2004, LCCs are now edging into
Australasia, led by operators such as Australia’s Virgin Blue.
In Asia, Air Asia in Malaysia has created waves by getting 30% of the domestic Malaysian
Market share and generating profits within 3years of inception in 2001.
There is no dobt that the growth of LCCs has affected the large network carriers. Their
growth and profitability even during the industry recession, which started in 2001, is in sharp
contrast to the poor fortunes of major network carriers.
In India, this revolution has been brought by national carrier Air Deccan.
LCCs (Low Cost Carriers) and their “No Frills” Business Model
The “no frills” LCC business model was based on the premise that there were a segment of
customers who preferred fares, as they did not need all the conveniences and service frills the
major network carriers offering. These travelers really needed an economical, quick, safe and
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timely service between two cities. LCC like Air Deccan has been offering just this in Indian
Civil Aviation Industry.
For the airline, cutting away the frills would reduce costs, which would in turn enabled the
airline to offer lower prices. The economical discounted fares offered by these airlines
created a whole new segment of customers, who hitherto found air travel too expansive.
These consisted initially of leisure travelers and small businessman. Gradually they began
attracting the customers of the network carriers, who for some simple travel itineraries did
not need all the conveniences and frills offered by the network carriers. These LCCs also
operated on some smaller routes not served well by the traditional network carriers, which
simultaneously created a niche segment of travelers, and also helped reduce cost further.
While the successful LCCs have based their business on low-costs, they have not
compromised on safety, “on time” flights and customer convenience. The business model
and, hence, the choice of operational models of aircraft size, airports, etc., have also helped
these airlines cater to an entirely new set of customers at first, and gradually also encroach
upon the customer base of the traditional “full service” operators.
The Mechanics of LCCs’ “Low-Cost”
The cost advantage these carriers created and enjoyed over the traditional airlines was more
due to the operational processes that followed from this business model than from the
removal of the frills of service as commonly understood by the phrase “no frills”.
So cost advantages of low-cost carriers comes from these simpler processes:
• Providing only point-to-point service, which increases aircraft and personal utilizations
by avoiding the slack of complex flight schedules structured for connecting passengers.
• Reducing the cost of labor-intensive processes needed to provide baggage handling,
and transfer of passengers for seamless connections, which are further complicated by the
need to accommodate last minute changes.
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• Eliminating in-flight “frills”, which save on the time and processes of preparing for and
delivering such services, thereby, improving aircraft turnarounds.
• A simple internet/telephone-based reservations system for point-to-point bookings.
This avoids the travel agent-based distribution system for tailored to selling tickets across
the globe and to provide customers the convenience of connections and changes required
for a complex travel itinerary.
• Using a single type of aircraft as all destinations have similar travel times and landing
facilities. This result in savings in training, servicing, aircraft downtimes and spare parts
inventory holding costs.
• Flying to smaller airports, apart from savings in direct landing and parking charges,
enables faster aircraft turnarounds.
• Thus, the simple limited service model of low-cost carriers is able to achieve significantly
better velocity of asset utilization with quicker aircraft turnarounds by saving on the time
used up by complex processes in to business model of the traditional full service carriers.
The Cost savings of the LCC business model can be summarized in three broad areas.
• Business model process related cost savings.
• Overhead (labor) related.
• Direct Costs savings on “frills” removed.
LCC (Low Cost Carriers) Business Around The World
LCC business in the US
In the US, after deregulation in 1978 there were many new carriers, most of which went bust.
The strong network carriers were able to out compete and crush most of these “me too”
carriers who operated in their turf. That’s when Southwest used a different business model to
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compete with enormous success, which was then adopted by other low-cost carriers like Jet
Blue and ValueJet (now Air Tran).
Now the American LCCs business model has matured, with these carriers not only
being able to stand up to competition, but also be more profitable. They have even been able
to beat the network carriers on some parameters of service on which they compete, such as
reliability and punctuality. By 2004, LCCs were able to capture a share of close to 30% of
the domestic market of US. The American Market has matured. Low-cost carriers
compete with the traditional network carriers, and also with regional carriers and charters.
As the competition between LCCs has increased in the US market, some LCCs have
started offering “frills” to differentiate themselves. Jet Blue offers Satellite TV and even
assigned seats.
LCC business in the Europe
Europe’s first LCC was Ryan Air, which remodeled itself into one in 1991,
connecting Dublin with other cities in Britain. Easy Jet the other hugely successful European
LCC was launched in 1995 covering routes in the UK from its Luton Base. However, it was
only in 1997, when Europe’s airspace was fully deregulated that pan European LCCs started
operating.
Hence, for the first few years the LCC business was restricted to travel between the
British Isles. Even as of 2004, while LCCs had almost 40% of capacity share in London, it
was only 12% and 20% at Paris and Frankfurt. It is only in the last few years that cross
country LCC flights increased in Europe.
The two earliest LCCs in Europe, Ryan Air and Easy Jet started like their American
counterparts offering “no frills”, point-to-point service from secondary airports. However
they focused on two different segments of customers. Easy Jet focused on the smaller
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business traveler and, hence, operated on major business routes such as from London to
smaller cities and holiday destinations. Ryan Air on the other hand focused on the leisure
travel market, which was hitherto dominated by Charter airlines, and also on the personal
Visiting friends and relatives (VFR) travel market between Ireland and England.
This European market is still in a Shakeout stage, where some new LCCs have failed
and some others are likely to fail.
LCCs Business in Asia
The first LCC to start in Asia was Air Asia in Malaysia towards the end of 2001. In less than
three years it has captured 30% of domestic market share. It is expected to generate profits of
$16 mn in 2004, on projected revenue of $120 mn. The interesting fact is that almost all the
growth has come from new customers, as Malaysian airlines hardly lost any business in the
domestic market in these years.
Air Asia has received landing rights in Thailand, Indonesia and the Philippines. Thai Air
Asia is a joint venture between Thai Airlines and Air Asia. Singapore Airlines has launched
Tiger Airways to cover popular tourist destinations such as Bali, Hong Kong, Bangkok and
Phuket. Value Air and Silk Air are two other Singapore-based LCCs.
Indonesia’s Lion Air and Air Paradise are LCC airlines.Malaysia’s Athena air services
and Philippines Cebu-pacific are other LCCs already In operation.
In India, Air Deccan has been the pioneer with the LCCno frills business model. Spurred by
Air Deccan’s entry and initial success, many new airlines have announced their intention to
enter the domestic airline market using the LCC business model. The UB group’s Kingfisher
Airlines, Go Airways from the Wadia family, and Royal airlines (formerly Modiluft), have
already received government permission to fly and have placed orders for aircraft. These
airlines plan to commence operations in the first two quarters of 2005.
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While the LCC business is relatively new in Asia, it offers a huge scope for the LCC
business. Asia has close to 400 cities with over half a million population. The number of
travelers, both business and leisure travel is growing rapidly. The main element missing is
the presence of enough functional secondary airports.
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SWOT ANALYSIS OF THE INDIAN AVIATION
INDUSTRY
SWOT means the strengths, weakness, threats and opportunities. This is one of the essential
requirements of any organization and the foundation for understanding the industry of that
particular organization. The continuous volatile environment of the aviation industry has
been analysed with respect the extended marketing mix ( product, price, place, promotion,
process, people and physical evidence). While individual airlines each analyze and make
decisions based on their own situations, there are overall industry similarities that all airlines
face, with each endeavoring to maximize strengths and opportunities while minimizing
weaknesses and threats.
STRENGTHS
• A major strength of any airline is the product itself (air travel). Despite downturns,
over time air travel continues to grow, not only due to population growth, but also
due to an increased propensity to fly.
• The entry of low-cost carriers pioneered by Air Deccan helped greatly reduce the
costs involved in flying. This helped attract consumers for whom air travel was only a
dream. Now a number of low-cost airlines are operating in India, namely Go
Airways, Spice Jet, and Kingfisher Air, and they have a major share of the Indian
aviation industry.
• Indian labour costs are an advantage, at $30-35 per man-hour. This compares with
$55-60 in South-East Asia and Middle East and even higher in the USA and Europe.
• The change in lifestyle of people and growth in the disposable income has resulted in
an increase in leisure travelers for the past few years; 5 years back 85% were business
travelers.
WEAKNESS
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• All the major players in the aviation industry focus on particular regions rather than
focusing on India as a country. For example Air Deccan focuses exclusively on south
Indian market while Go Air focuses on southern and western India.
• The unplanned location of airport and the lack of proper infrastructure facilities at the
airport. Though the government has tied up with private companies such as GMR and
has upgraded airports such Delhi and Banglore but still there is a long way to go.
• Airlines have a high "spoilage" rate compared to most other industries. Once a flight
leaves the gate, an empty seat is lost and non-revenue producing.
OPPORTUNITIES
• Government allows 100% FDI via the automatic route for the green field airports.
Also, foreign investment up to 74% is permissible through direct approvals while
special permissions are required for 100% investment. Private investors are allowed
to establish general airports and captive airstrips while keeping a distance of 150 km
from the existing ones. About 49% FDI is allowed for investment in domestic airlines
via the automatic route. However, this option is not available for foreign airline
corporations. Complete equity ownership is granted to NRIs (Non Resident Indians).
Foreign direct investment up to 74% is allowed for non-scheduled and cargo airlines.
Thus, all these policies promote foreign investment in this industry.
• Investment opportunities of US$ 110 billion are being envisaged up to 2020 with US$
80 billion towards new aircraft and US$ 30 billion towards the development of airport
infrastructure, according to the Investment Commission of India.
• Technology advances can result in cost savings, from more fuel efficient aircraft to
more automated processes on the ground. Technology can also result in increasedrevenue due to customer-friendly service enhancements like in-flight Internet access
and other value-added products for which a customer will pay extra.
THREATS
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• One of the basic weaknesses in the aviation industry is the fuel costs which are 70%
higher than International standards. The fuel bill is 40% of operating cost. Aviation
Turbine Fuel (ATF) prices in India is around Rs. 37,800 per kilo litre against
Rs.21,800 in the Average International Markets. Also 20% of the Operational Budget
is spent on training pilots. Furthermore, landing and parking charges are 78% higher
than the international average.
There is a shortage of skilled manpower which includes pilots, cabin crew and ground staff.
Also there is high attrition rate among the skilled manpower within the aviation industry.
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CONCLUSION
In service sector, the marketing strategy hinges around the marketing mix which is defined as
the elements an organisation controls, that can be used to satisfy or communicate with the
customers. It includes the 7 Ps which are product place, price, promotion, people physical
evidence and process and of late another P relevant to the service industry has been added ie.
pace.
Though all the competitive airlines keep these basis Ps in mind while devising the marketing
strategy but their stress varies and that is what gives them a distinct touch and enabling them
to score over the others.
While Indian Airlines excels in advertising cum media blitzkrieg and dissemination of
information about the strength of the company in a dramatic and innovative manner to
establish on emotional credible bond with the customer, Jet Airways prides itself on superior
service both on the ground and in the air. It is also very brand conscious and has an
emasculate young cabin crew supporting a yellow rose – an international symbol of
friendship, warmth and caring. Customer satisfaction is of prime importance to Sahara
Airline. It is striving to reach and attain newer heights in passenger care comfort, reliability,
safety and service. It may also has many firsts to its credit. Its on time performance has been
consistently 97.5% and dispatch reliability touches 99.8%.
The healthly competition of domestic airlines has set new trends in the quality of service. In
the monopolistic environment of Indian Airlines the quality and the desire to win over the
constraints was totally dismal. With the oncoming of Jet Airways and Air Sahara there is sea
change in the quality of service and the pride of the job.
It is a matter of great significance that the airlines staff now care about the passenger comfort
and take pains to see that the flight are on time. The high percentage 98% of on time
service of Sahara Airlines is the hall mark of their quality of service.
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RECOMMENDATIONS
The research study and the analysis of the various aspects tapped lead to the following
recommendation:
1) With the oncoming of the Private Airlines on the country the customer awareness and
aspiration of quality of service has been enhanced considerably. So all the airlines
should emphasis on providing more efficient services both on the ground and in the
air as done by Jet Airways to a large extent.
2) The check-in time should be minimal. Wherever there is likely to be long cues more
counters should be opened.
3) The facility of valet services as introduced by Sahara Airlines should be adopted by
all airlines and it should be extended to all classes.
4) Tele reservation and computerised check-in procedure should mandatory for all
airlines.
5) The process of ticketing and cancellation should be made more easy, smooth and as
flawless as possible as most of the respondent were not happy with the present
ticketing procedure.
6) Delayed flight which is a very painful experience for the travelers, should be attended
to as top priority because the main clientage is business men and they are time bound.
7) There is a need to improve the quality of in-flight comfort especially for a economy
class by way of seat pitch, leg room, quality and choice of food.
Customer grievance and prompt redressal should also be rated as top priority as this will not
only provide the necessary input and the feedback but also would go a long way in improving
the image of the airlines.
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BIBLIOGRAPHY
Books and Magazines
Service Marketing by Verma, 2008
Annual Report of Air India and Kingfisher.
Indian Aviation Weekly, Jan 30th, 2011
Aviation International Times, Oct 17th 2010
Business World, March 7th to 21st 2010
Websites
http://indianaviation2011.blogspot.com/2011/05/india-aviation-industry-needs-30-bn-for.html
http://www.daijiworld.com/chan/exclusive_arch.asp?ex_id=1522&ex_title=A+Century+of+Indian+Aviation%3A+Challenges+and+Opportunities
www.airindia.com
www.iht.com/
www.businessweek.com