Air India starts using Mongolian airspace for North America flights to cut costs

Air India Flight. File. | Photo Credit: VIJAY SONEJI

Air India has started utilizing the Mongolian airspace for a fewer of its North America flights from the nationalist superior arsenic an alternate way for reducing operational costs that person jumped owed to the closure of the Pakistan airspace past month, sources said connected Tuesday.

Besides, the bearer is having a method halt successful Kolkata for immoderate of the North America flights from Delhi, they added.

71 flights a week

The Tata Group-owned hose has been exploring alternatives for the services from the nationalist superior to North America successful bid to reduce the flying clip arsenic good arsenic operational expenses.

At present, Air India operates 71 flights a week to North American destinations. Of them, 54 services are from the nationalist capital. The hose flies to Chicago, New York, Washington, San Francisco, and Newark successful the U.S., and to Toronto and Vancouver successful Canada.

Mostly, the Mongolian airspace is utilized by immoderate of Air India's flights from San Francisco and Vancouver. The flights from Delhi to these 2 cities are mostly utilizing the Pacific route, according to the sources.

The flights AI186 from Vancouver to Delhi and AI174 from San Francisco to Delhi person been utilizing the Mongolian airspace for the past fewer days, arsenic per accusation from formation tracking website Flightradar24.com.

For immoderate of the flights connecting North America cities and Delhi, the utilisation of the Mongolian airspace and a method halt astatine Kolkata are among the alternatives that person been chosen by Air India, the sources said.

With specified an statement successful place, the hose does not person to marque a halt successful a European metropolis portion operating definite agelong haul and ultra agelong haul flights from Delhi to North America.

Having a halt successful a European metropolis means higher expenses, including landing charges and substance costs, according to the sources.

The alternate besides helps successful addressing the challenges of higher substance burn, operational expenses and flying work clip regulation (FDTL) for the crew.

Under the norms of aviation regulator DGCA, formation unit tin enactment continuously lone for 8 hours. With the mean formation clip getting longer, the unit volition beryllium successful breach of the FDTL rules.

When determination is simply a landing en route, the hose tin question support for the unit to bash their work for further hours. In the lawsuit of agelong haul and ultra agelong haul flights – those supra the 14-hour duration – airlines volition person 2 sets of crew.

Air India MD and CEO Campbell Wilson, successful a connection to unit connected May 2, said determination had been a fig of network-related developments and the hose had temporarily adjusted immoderate of its Europe and U.S. routes successful effect to caller airspace restrictions, arsenic good arsenic added a fewer method stops.

On May 2, sources said the hose was looking astatine assorted alternatives for its North America flights from the nationalist capital, including operating the services with a method halt successful a metropolis wrong India.

In the aftermath of retaliatory measures taken by India aft the Pahalgam panic onslaught connected April 22 that killed 26 people, Pakistan closed its airspace for Indian airlines connected April 24.

The airspace closure has resulted successful longer flying hours, higher substance consumption, payload and craft availability issues arsenic good arsenic unit flying work clip regulation challenges for airlines operating planetary flights to the West.

India besides closed its airspace for Pakistan airlines connected April 30.

On Saturday, India and Pakistan reached an knowing to halt each firings and subject actions connected land, aerial and oversea with contiguous effect.

Published - May 14, 2025 03:45 americium IST