Air India slashes fare for Riyadh passengers

Arab News
Kundan Lal Gothwal, Air India manager, center, with AI staffers in Riyadh on Sunday.

India’s national carrier, Air India (AI), has slashed ticket fares from Riyadh to four major cities namely Mumbai, New Delhi, Trivandrum and Kochi. Air India will offer the slashed fare with immediate effect, and the offer will be valid until Sept. 30.
The announcement was made by Air India Manager Kundan Lal Gothwal during a press briefing on Sunday. The one-way fare to Mumbai starts from SR705 ($188), while the return fare will be SR1,291. “The slashed fare from Riyadh to New Delhi for one way is SR591, while the round-trip ticket cost will be SR1,025 in the promotion period,” said Gothwal.
He also announced the commencement of new services from Riyadh to Calicut from Oct. 29 this year. “AI will operate direct flights to Calicut daily in a week except on Tuesdays,” said Gothwal, adding that the tickets for Riyadh-Calicut direct service sector will be available soon.
Gothwal said that Saudi government agencies including the General Authority of Civil Aviation (GACA) have already given a nod of approval to operate the flights to the south Indian city. “Another initiative taken by Riyadh AI station is to instil among its employees a feeling of customer concern besides minimizing baggage mishandling,” he said.
Gothwal said the one-way fare to Trivandrum is now SR535, while the round-trip fare is SR1,295. In the case of the south Indian city of Kochi, the one-way ticket cost is SR657, while the round trip cost will be SR1,152 during the promotion period. Gothwal said more information about the fare and flights can be obtained from the AI website, its office or agents.
He said the slashed fare will not be applicable during the peak period from Aug. 31 to Sept. 5. Gothwal said AI has been operating a daily flight from Riyadh to Mumbai besides three fights in a week to Delhi and two to Trivandrum. This is in addition to two flights from Riyadh to Cochin with 100 percent passenger loads.
The airlines has two major hubs— one located at the Indira Gandhi International Airport in New Delhi, and another at Chhatrapati Shivaji International Airport in Mumbai.