GoAir takes the big leap, finally

The smallest of India’s low-fare carriers is in a hurry to make up for lost time Giorgio De Roni, GoAir’s new chief executive officer, is no stranger to aggressive growth. In his previous job with Air One, an Italian private airline, he increased its market share from 6 per cent to 30 per cent. And the fleet count went up from 10 to 64. In the process, Air One became a profitable airline.

De Roni will have ample opportunity to put that skill to good use in GoAir, which has shown a reversal of fortune from two years ago. His appointment coincided with the airline’s announcement last week that it would buy 72 Airbus A320neo planes for $7.2 billion – something that prompted the CEO to say that his “target is to outperform competition”.

That may be a tall order as GoAir remains the smallest of India’s low-fare carriers (market share 6.4 per cent) with others such as Indigo and SpiceJet taking a giant leap in market share as well as fleet expansion. But the aircraft acquisition deal shows that the Wadia group airline is finally taking steps to get into the big league. The six-year-old airline currently has 10 A320 planes, but together with an order of 20 A320s placed in 2006, its total order with Airbus is now 92 aircraft.

Managing Director Jeh Wadia is quick to dispel any sense of disbelief. “Let me tell you, these planes are confirmed orders, not options,” he said, speaking at a press conference last week to announce the deal. The 72 planes will be delivered from 2015 onwards. The company is tightlipped on how it would fund the expansion, except saying that the airline is generating money and that the group is capable of funding the 72-plane deal through a mix of equity and debt.

But what would be the new CEO’s strategy going forward? De Roni says GoAir plans to tap the corporate sector, specially small and medium enterprises, to increase its passenger volumes. “I am evaluating trends and will have a concrete proposal shortly,” he says, adding the airline has so far been more oriented towards leisure travelers.

There are also plans to expand the footprint fast, to make up for lost time. So Chennai and Bangalore are the next on the radar. The airline is also working out a new network expansion strategy to tap tier II and tier III cities, which is a big change from its earlier strategy of flying only between big metros.

Last month, the airline introduced a 4.40 a.m flight between Mumbai and Delhi. “The early morning Delhi flight gets a full load. Those travelling by road or air to hill destinations in North prefer this flight,” says Rahul Deans, general manager (marketing). The airline has also added a morning flight to Srinagar in view of good passenger load and high fares.

There is no denying that after a turbulent phase during 2008 and 2009, GoAir did turn around under the stewardship of Kaushik Khona, who was brought in from Bombay Dyeing, as the CEO. It flew 3.3 million passengers last year and expects a 20 per cent growth this year. Go Air has 79 daily flights and its load factor is consistently around 80 per cent. The airline’s revenue grew 61 per cent in FY 2011 and profit after tax was up by 7 per cent. While absolute numbers are not available, company executives say operating margin was up 15.7 per cent and operating profit by 13.7 per cent. Kapil Kaul of Centre for Asia Pacific Aviation estimates the airline made a profit of Rs 40-50 crore last fiscal.

Wadia attributes the success to the airline’s focus on small issues: clean aircraft, cleanest bathroms, smiling crew members. Other factors such as better turnaround of flights also helped.

Read More

Two flights cancelled due to fog

PATNA: Thick layer of fog over the city sky on Sunday disrupted air traffic at Jayaprakash Narayan International Airport here.

While GoAir cancelled its morning Delhi-Patna-Delhi flight (G8-341), Air India's Delhi-Patna-Delhi ( IC-409) flight arrived only after visibility improved much later in the day around 1:30 pm.

Jet Air's Kolkata-Patna-Kolkata flight (9W-2853) was also cancelled due to poor visibility in evening. The flight is scheduled at JPNI airport at around 7 pm.

"The visibility at runway in the morning was well below 600 metres when quite a few flights were scheduled to arrive. By 1 pm, the visibility improved to 1600 metres, allowing operation of flights," a source at the airport told TOI.

Not many of fog-hit flyers could be accommodated on other flights and they had to return home. Flights to Bangalore, Patna-Bangalore, Mumbai-Patna-Mumbai, Kolkata-Patna-Kolkata, Delhi-Patna-Delhi and other routes also ran much behind schedule.

Flights' operation suffered on several days last week as cold wave has persisted and the minimum temperatures has slid below normal on several days.

Source: Times of India

The Go Airways was established inside year 2004 inside month of June by the Wadia Group. The Wadia Group may be the main owner of Britannia Industries, the famous confectionery group and Bombay Dyeing. The Go Airline operates in several parts on a country and offers the most of services to its customers at the most reasonable price and match the global standard. This air carrier tries its most effective to provide the flight tickets at the most reasonable price in comparison to other airlines.



A popular name in domestic air travel in the India may be the name Go Airways. The airline provides a wide number in low price air travelling options. If you are searching for to book tickets on any on a flights conducted by the airline, the most alternative for you is to avail services obtainable over the Internet. With secure and convenient booking options, this award-winning web site takes care of all your travelling needs and is indeed a one-stop destination for tourism and travel in India.



The chief destinations of Go Air Airlines are as follows: Bangalore, Chennai, Mumbai, Kolkata, Goa, Pune. GoAir provides the worth for money, without having compromising on either security or the facilities as well as the conveniences which it provides. Adding together some new places to its obtainable list of popular and accepted areas, the airways would soon envelop the routes like Bhopal, Kozhikode, Aurangabad, Kolhapur, Rajkot, Madurai and Bhavnagar etc.



With the aim of providing the most cost-efficient air travel in India, Go Air provides airfares which are significance for money. With its base in Mumbai, the firm offers the most competitive costs in air tickets. Despite ensuring how the airline is kept low price at all times, the airline never compromises on a safety or comfort in any regard. If you must travel to any major destination in India, either for firm or for other reasons, you should appear no additional than this airline.



This is a fly smart Airline, the route network of Go Air expands for the well recognized holiday and crucial firm destinations which are situated all inside country. Go Airways is committed to providing the most services to its traveler's at the most attractive rates. Offering economy along with firm classes on all of the flights, the airline has some thing for all kinds of travelers. An increasing quantity of folks seeking to travel by the airline are today creating reservations as it offers the widest number in attractive packages and special discounts.

Few Words about Go Airways

GoAir is an Indian low-cost airline based in Mumbai, Maharashtra. It operates domestic passenger services to 18 cities with 131 daily flights and approximately 917 weekly flights. Its main base is Chhatrapati Shivaji International Airport, Mumbai.

Go Airways being a no-frills airlines, Go does not offer a complimentary meal service to its passengers. However, it does offer a buy-on-board food service where items such as sandwiches, parathas, cookies, nuts, soft drinks and Mineral water can be purchased.