Indian residents in the UAE can expect more affordable flights to their homeland as IndiGo plans to expand its services to three additional cities next month. The low-cost airline will commence direct flights between Abu Dhabi and Mangaluru, Coimbatore, and Tiruchirappalli starting August. Daily flights from Abu Dhabi to Mangaluru will begin on August 9, while Tiruchirappalli to Abu Dhabi flights will operate four times weekly starting August 11, 2024. Coimbatore to Abu Dhabi flights will run thrice weekly from August 10.
The UAE-India air route is among the most active, driven by the presence of 3.7 million Indian nationals in the UAE, making them the largest expatriate workforce in the country. High demand for air travel often leads to significant fare increases, particularly during peak holiday seasons. Industry leaders have urged governments to boost seat availability to meet this rising demand. Many Indians also visit Dubai for tourism year-round.
According to OAG, the India-UAE corridor ranks 9th in terms of seat capacity for July 2024, with 2.192 million seats. IndiGo has announced one-way fares as low as Dh353 from Abu Dhabi to Mangaluru and Dh330 to Coimbatore for the coming months. Return fares for UAE travelers can be as low as Dh843. Abu Dhabi Airports' Q1 2024 data indicated that Mumbai, Kochi, and Delhi were the second, third, and fourth busiest destinations, respectively.
"With these new flights, IndiGo now operates 89 non-stop weekly flights to Abu Dhabi from 13 Indian cities," stated Vinay Malhotra, IndiGo's head of global sales. He emphasized that the airline aims to offer an "affordable" travel experience. Earlier, IndiGo announced six weekly direct flights between Bengaluru and Abu Dhabi starting August 1. In January, the airline removed fuel surcharges on all its domestic and international flights.
