Jet Airways (JAI, Mumbai International) is looking at using its incoming fleet of B737-8s to open up new routes to Africa and the CIS region. The Indian carrier is expecting a total of seventy-five B737 MAX from Boeing (BOE, Washington National) the first of which is provisionally slated to be delivered in June with a further ten due through March 2019.
Speaking to The Economic Times, Senior Vice President (Network Planning & Revenue Management), Raj Sivakumar, said the MAX's range was particularly appealing in terms of the new markets it opened up and its operational benefits for existing routes.
“The MAX offers a longer stage length and it also offers better payload on existing stage-lengths," he said. "For instance, a Delhi International-Singapore Changi flight is on the fringe of a B737-800's capability. Especially in the winter months when there is fog and the pilot has to carry extra fuel, we are forced to bring down the capacity."
“There are some markets that automatically enter into discussion with the MAXes. A couple of markets in Africa become possibilities. If you stretch it, CIS countries from Delhi International become possibilities,” he added.
Jet Airways currently operates two B737-700s, sixty-seven B737-800s, two B737-900s, and four B737-900(ER)s from its hubs at Delhi, Mumbai International, and Bengaluru International.
On that note, Jet Airways has announced it will develop Guwahati into a gateway hub to India's eight Northeastern states that comprise Arunachal Pradesh, Assam, Manipur, Meghalaya, Mizoram, Nagaland, Sikkim and Tripura.
Outlining its Summer 2018 schedule, the carrier said the move was part of its strategy to further strengthen its domestic footprint of 45 cities across the country.
"The mix of new services - both non-stop as well as direct - between emerging cities, key metros and our hubs in Mumbai, Delhi and Bengaluru, will not just help cater to this demand, but will also facilitate quicker and more convenient movement of guests throughout our network - in India and abroad," Vinay Dube, Chief Executive Officer, Jet Airways, said. "I am sure our unique and differentiated services will reinforce Jet Airways' place as the airline of choice in Indian skies, besides giving an impetus to connectivity, trade and development in all the cities in the North East, including Aizawl, Jorhat, Silchar, Imphal and Guwahati."
