New Delhi, March 11 (IANS) Air India and Air India Express will together operate a total of 58 scheduled and non-scheduled flights to and from West Asia on March 12, the airline said on Wednesday.

Both the airlines will operate one non-scheduled round flight each tomorrow to Riyadh in Saudi Arabia from Mumbai and Kozhikode, respectively, it added.

The two carriers will also operate their respective scheduled services to and from Jeddah and Muscat with a total of 10 flights to and from Jeddah, and 8 scheduled flights to and from Muscat operated by Air India Express.

Additionally, Air India will operate one round-trip from Delhi and two round-trips from Mumbai to Jeddah while Air India Express will operate one round-trip each from Bengaluru and Kozhikode to Jeddah.

The statement further added that Air India Express will also operate its scheduled services to Muscat, including one round-trip each from Delhi and Mumbai and two round-trips from Kozhikode.

In addition to the scheduled services, Air India and Air India Express would operate a total of 40 non-scheduled flights to and from the United Arab Emirates (UAE) and Saudi Arabia, subject to availability of slots and other prevailing conditions at the departure stations at the time.

These flights are being operated with the requisite permissions from the relevant Indian and local regulatory authorities.

Moreover, all Air India flights to and from North America, Europe, Australia and other regions continue to operate per schedule, with 78 additional flights operating to and from Europe, the United States, Sri Lanka and the Maldives, between March 10-18.

“Air India group is exploring every opportunity to operate other additional ad-hoc flights to and from destinations in West Asia,” said the airline.

Earlier, Air India group announced a phased expansion of fuel surcharge on its domestic and international routes, saying the move is “necessitated by the steep rise in jet fuel prices” arising from the geopolitical situation in the Gulf region.

The new fuel surcharges are being implemented in three phases, covering travel on all flights, including those operated by Air India Express.

—IANS

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