AI express cancellation: Kerala-Gulf passengers hit

Cancellation of services of Air India Express, the budget airline of Air India, during the peak season of August and September had severely hit travellers in the Kerala-Gulf sector, Kerala Association of Travel Agents (KATA) president K V Muraleedharan has said.

In a statement here, he said the cancellation of as many as 944 services in the sector during the period would affect around 1.7 lakh passengers.

The statement alleged that there was room to suspect that a larger conspiracy was behind the cancellation of AI express flights and the decision was taken to help foreign airline companies.

The Air India strike was called off 40 days back, but the Civil Aviation Ministry had not taken any steps to resume AI express flights. With this, ticket rate in the sector, which was between Rs 6,000 and 13,000 before the strike, had now gone up to Rs 30,000 to Rs 70,000.

The statement also criticised the Union Ministers from the state for not raising the issue with authorities concerned when passengers in the Kerala-Gulf sector were being fleeced.