Air India, Asiana Airways Sign Code Share Agreement

In an attempt to provide seamless link to Seoul, Air India has entered into a code-share agreement with Asiana Airways, a major South Korean airline. The code-share will be put into effect soon.

The necessary testing system for such code-share cooperation is likely to begin soon, an Air India official.

Air India has been witnessing some positive growth over the last few months with considerable rise in revenue growth. The airline remains one of the most popular alternatives among holiday makers and other travellers seeking deals on inbound and outbound flights to India.

Apart from Asiana, Air India is likely to enter into similar code-share arrangements with Air China and Egypt Air very soon, the official further said.

As of now, India’ national airline has code share agreements with Lufthansa, Singapore Airlines, Kuwait Airways, Air Mauritius, Austrian Airlines, South African Airways, Aeroflot, Sri Lankan Airlines, Swiss Airlines, Ethiopian Airlines, British Midland and Turkish Airlines.

With Asiana Airways, Air India hopes to move beyond the regular code share arrangements and intends to freely include additional sectors on each other's network.

Even Asiana is contemplating newer destinations in India. The country remains a top holiday destination among many and there is always demand for tickets on cheap flights to India.

Air India and Asiana Airways are also likely to integrate their Frequent Flyer Programmes (FFP) to enable the travellers to earn points on their Air India FFP and vice-versa. It sure is good news for travel buffs as they will be able to redeem their air miles for various privileges, even maybe cheap flights.

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Air India, Turkish Airlines Sign Free Sale Codeshare Agreement

India’s national carrier Air India has come up with a new code share agreement with Turkish Airlines.

The two airlines signed a Free Sale Codeshare Agreement after their earlier blocked space code share agreement. The new agreement allows both carriers to market each other’s flights by their own code and flight numbers on a free sale basis.

The new pact, which has been in operation from March 1, 2012, permits Turkish Airlines’ customers who are looking to book flights to India to enjoy the convenience of seamless connection on Air India operated routes to Hyderabad, Chennai, Ahmedabad, Bengaluru, Kolkata and Amritsar.

With a new agreement in place, travellers can hope to get best of both carriers. However, for travellers with ‘not so deep pockets’ who are hoping to land a seat on cheap flights to India, it remains to be seen whether this code share works any wonder for them.

Mr. Adnan Aykac, General Manager, Northern and Eastern India, Turkish Airlines was delighted with the development and expressed his willingness to work with Air India in future to create more travel options for the customers. Mr. Adnan Aykac also made it clear that the airline “plans to further expand and strengthen our presence in this region.”

At present, Turkish Airlines operates 14 weekly flights to Istanbul from Delhi and Mumbai. And if reports are to be believed then Turkish Airlines, one of the fastest growing airlines in Europe, is planning to launch more flights to India’s major markets.

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