‘Curbs on Gulf flights will retard India’s growth, cost carriers dear’

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Tim Clark
| Photo Credit: REUTERS

He is a global aviation leader today, but Emirates President Tim Clark’s childhood memories are filled with experiences of flying with Air India.

However, just as its nationalisation ‘snatched’ an opportunity for India, the government’s reticence today to allow Gulf carriers more flights into India could “constrain” growth here and result in losses of “$800-$900 million” for airlines, said Mr. Clark.

“We’re not here to threaten. We are never here to cause worry,” he said at a media roundtable on the sidelines of the CAPA India Aviation Summit 2023.

“We are here to add value to the Indian economy and for the citizens of India,” he asserted.

Dubai has demanded that the air service agreement it signed with the Government of India in 2014, allowing its airlines to fill 66,000 seats to India, be raised by another 50,000.

“If you don’t expand the capacity, the losers will be people who want to go there – the Indian citizens. Carriers will lose $800 to $900 million worth of income every year by not taking that growth up to where we think it should be today,” the Emirates President said.

The government’s reluctance ironically comes at “hugely exciting times” and “enthusiasm” in the India story such as the “8% GDP growth outstripping just about every GDP CAGR in the world,” Mr. Clark underlined.



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