Amid aviation storm, Port Blair is island of calm

V Ayyappan | TNN

Oct 20, 2008 

Chennai: The fact that the islands of Andaman & and Nicobar can be accessed only by air or in a much-slower fashion via sea has turned out to be a blessing for airlines operating to the well-known tourist destination. 

    The Union territory is one of the few destinations in the country where passenger and tourist traffic has been unaffected by the high air fares and the slowdown in the economy. In fact, airlines have decreased frequencies of flights to all major airports since June, with the exception of Port Blair. 

    Air India, Kingfisher Red and Jetlite operate daily services from Chennai to the Union territory. Airline sources said the Chennai-Port Blair sector had not seen a considerable reduction in passenger traffic in spite of the increase in fares.

    “We are receiving more than 60% passenger loads everyday. A majority are traders and government employees, who travel on leave travel concessions, and upper middle class natives of the islands,” an Air India official said. 

    More than 1,500 passengers fly between Chennai and Port Blair every day of which roughly 180 are tourists. The number of tourists is expected to go up in December and January, when the tourist season peaks. 

    The number of air travellers has not hit a downward spiral as has happened to other destinations due to two reasons: airlines fly daily while ships sail only three or four times a month. And deluxe fares on ships are more or less the same as air fares. The deluxe fare on a ship is Rs 5,800 while the air fare is Rs 6,000. Clearly, passenger traffic has not dipped because transportation choices are limited. Unlike on the mainland, travellers can switch only to ships, which take three days to reach Port Blair from Chennai. 

    “The Federation Indian Airlines (FIA) has agreed that air fares should not be further reduced. So, the sector will not see a major fluctuation in passenger traffic, even though it is served largely by low cost carriers,” said an airline official. 

    With the tourist season already on “hotels have received 70% bookings for December and January in Port Blair,” said A Govindarajan, senior manager, Andaman & Nicobar Islands Integrated Development Corporation (ANIIDCO). “The islands continue to be a favourite destination for central government employees. But, corporates too have started to travel. These travellers prefer to fly, while some tourists sail by the MV Nancowry to experience the sea,” he added. 

    Airports Authority of India (AAI) statistics show that domestic aircraft movement registered 19.1% increase and freight traffic increased by 17.5% between April and July when compared to the corresponding period last year to Port Blair. 

    The share of the low cost carriers in passenger traffic has also increased — 41% of the passenger traffic to Port Blair is handled by Kingfisher Red, Jetlite and SpiceJet.