New flight services from city on ‘waiting’; Air India declines amid rising fuel costs

Chhatrapati Sambhajinagar:

Hopes of launching new flight services from the city have once again been put on hold. Due to the ongoing conflict involving the US, Israel and Iran, along with rising fuel prices, airlines are under financial pressure, making it unlikely for any new flight services to begin from Chhatrapati Sambhajinagar in the coming months.

Chairman of the civil aviation committee of the Aurangabad Tourism Development Foundation (ATDF), Sunit Kothari recently held discussions with senior officials of Air India in Gurugram. During the meeting, the proposal to start a flight service between the city and Mumbai was raised. However, Air India clarified that under the current circumstances, it is not in a position to launch any new services.

Due to tensions in the Middle East, aviation fuel prices have nearly doubled by 2.5 times, significantly increasing operational costs for airlines. This has directly impacted service expansion, making it difficult to introduce new routes, increase flight frequency, or restart suspended services.

As a result, there is little likelihood of any positive development regarding new flight services from the city for at least the next few months. This may adversely affect tourism, industry and passengers.

Follow-up continues

Efforts are ongoing to stay in touch with various airlines, and attempts to start services will continue once the situation improves, Kothari said.