Vistara will unveil its international operations quicker than expected, as it will have 20 planes in its fleet by March 2018 — a quarter earlier than anticipated.
This was disclosed by the full service airline’s chief executive officer Phee Teik Yeoh said on Thursday, while announcing a commercial agreement with Japan Airlines. Vistara, which began its operations in January 2015, has 16 aircraft and is expected to get 20 planes by March next year. Airlines in India need to deploy 20 planes on domestic routes before they are allowed to fly on international sectors.
“March 2018 is when we will be able to apply for a permit to fly abroad,” Mr. Phee Teik said.
Long haul routes
The airline is expected to get its 21st aircraft by May next year. Vistara will target non-stop long-haul routes and Japan will be one of their destinations.
“We will be picking flights where we have some competitive advantages,” he said. “For passengers, non-stop is always better than a one-stop. Our core target will be connecting India non-stop to various places,” Vistara chief strategy and commercial officer Sanjiv Kapoor said.
