Air India signed a code-share agreement with Hong Kong Airlines
Under the code-share agreement, HKA will place its code on direct flights operated by Air India between Hong Kong and three cities including Delhi (DEL), Osaka (KIX) and Seoul (ICN) respectively. HKA passengers will have better access to an expanded network of destinations on Air India due to the arrangement.
Code share refers to the practice of one airline reselling another’s seats as if it were its own.
“They will be able to enjoy daily flights between Hong Kong and Delhi, a three times weekly flight (every Tue/Thu/Sat) between Hong Kong and Osaka, as well as a four times weekly flight (every Mon/Wed/Fri/Sun) between Hong Kong and Seoul, all to be served by Air India’s B787 Dreamliner,” Air India said.
The code share takes effect for flights booked from 10 June 2014 (HKG-DEL) and 4 July 2014 (HKG-KIX, HKG-ICN) respectively.
Air India already has code share partnerships with 12 other airlines across the globe.
Air India flies to 31 international destinations across five continents as well as 62 destinations within India.
“We are soon set to spread our wings to Rome and Milan in Italy and also to Moscow. The aircraft that will be operated under the code-share system with HKA is the world’s most advanced aircraft – the Dreamliner,” said Pankaj Srivastava, Commercial Director, Air India.
“The present code share with HKA is only the beginning of the partnership between the two airlines and we look forward to an expansion of the code share to also involve the transfer of AI passengers on HKA network,” he added.
Air India is likely to be better able to utilize its inventory through the code sharing arrangement. The national carrier of India has been making losses for several years due to high expenses and competition from private players.