Financial Times

No-frills Air Deccan flies to Colombo in mid-2005
India's Air Deccan, the new low-cost, no-frills airline subsidiary of Deccan Aviation, is to start international operations by the middle of next year with its first overseas destination being Colombo, says Suren Mirchandani, Managing Director of Deccan Aviation Sri Lanka.

The airline, styled along the lines of other low-cost carriers like EasyJet, Virgin Blue and Air Asia, has no separate seating classes in its aircraft and does not provide free meals. "Our aim is to start international operations and our first would be to Sri Lanka from India in mid-2005," Mirchandani said.

"Air Deccan is India's newest and fastest growing airline, and within one year of launching, it operates 100 flights a day to 20 destinations." Air Deccan is rapidly building up a fleet of new Airbus aircraft and made waves in India by offering fares for flights between Indian cities as cheap as the most expensive railway fares.

Travellers who used to spend Indian rupees 3-4,000 on long distance trains from Bangalore to Bombay and back can now fly at the same price on Air Deccan. The entry of the low-cost carrier is expected to increase pressure on existing airlines operating from Colombo.

The major airlines such as SriLankan Airlines first came under pressure with the entry of two Indian private operators, Air Sahara and Jet Airways.

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