New Delhi, Dec 10: Seeking to make flying affordable to the common man, national carrier Air India has rolled out an advance purchase scheme for the economy class, matching the fare with that of a 2AC train ticket price, including on key domestic destinations like Mumbai, Chennai and Kolkata.
The 90-day advance purchase fares (all-inclusive) starts at as low as Rs 2,865, sources said.
These advance purchase fares have already been put in the system for sale on various routes operated by Air India, they said.
As per the new scheme, a ticket price on Delhi-Mumbai route would cost Rs 2,865 while on Delhi-Bhubaneshwar the same would cost as low as Rs 3,470. Incidentally, the 2AC train ticket prices in these two sectors respectively are Rs 2,865 and Rs 3,325.
The scheme targets all segment of travellers, youth, students and vacationers, among others, they said.
In an effort to boost air connectivity, the civil aviation ministry has sought to put flying within the reach of the common man by capping air fares at about Rs 2,500 per flying hour under the Regional Connectivity Scheme (RCS).
It has also proposed to provide an upfront subsidy to airline operating on regional and remote routes as part of the draft civil aviation policy.
Besides, the policy has also proposed to develop no-frills airports at over 400 unused airstrips across the country at an estimated cost of around Rs 50 crore each for supporting flights to the unconnected destinations under the RCS.
