Why India’s Airlines Have a Long-Haul Road to Success
Skift Take
India’s airlines punch far below their weight in the intercontinental arena. In fact, deeply troubled Air India maintains its leadership in the market. But will things change as others, including some low-cost carriers, contemplate long-haul flying?
Editor's Note: This story was first published in Skift Airline Weekly on Sept. 3, 2018.
India today has just two intercontinental airlines. One is synonymous with cost bloat and government mismanagement. The other is nearly insolvent. Why isn't anyone stepping up to challenge Air India and Jet Airways?
Well, they soon will have some challengers—if those would-be challengers are undeterred, anyway, by India's current airline sector crisis, brought on by rising fuel prices, a falling rupee and bloody fare wars on short-haul routes. One long-haul aspirant, sure enough—the LCC SpiceJet—told Mint last month it would hold off on ordering wide-bodies until market conditions at home improve, even though intercontinental flying "will eventually happen."
SpiceJet is not alone in eyeing India's long-haul market, which some see as a potential sanctuary from raging competition in the short-haul market—think back to the early 2000s, when U.S. legacy carriers embarked on major intercon
