A China Eastern Airlines’ Airbus A320-232 at Kansai International Airport, Osaka, Japan (Iasta29/Flickr)China’s request to increase the number of flights for Chinese carriers has been rejected by India after Indian carriers voiced their opposition to it, stating that their expansion plans would be hit, reports The Economic Times.
A group of Indian carriers, consisting of Air India, SpiceJet, Jet Airways, IndiGo, and GoAir met with officials of the Ministry of Civil Aviation and voiced their opposition in June, after Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s trip to China where the Chinese government demanded more flying rights for its carriers.
There was a proposal to increase flying rights between the two countries, but Indian carriers opposed it on the grounds that they have plans to launch flights to China and the government should not agree on allowing more flights to Chinese airlines, as it would jeopardise their plans.An official of the civil aviation ministry
Under the current agreement, carriers from both countries can operate up to 42 flights each per week. While China has exhausted 93 per cent of its quota, India has only used up 12 per cent. Other carriers including Vistara along with the aforementioned ones are looking to start new flights to China.
India has in the past rejected similar demands from other countries, notably Qatar.
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