India's Newest Airline Looks to Fill Void From Second and Third-Tier Cities
Photo Credit: Fly91 will be the first airline to be based in India’s south-western coastal city of Goa. Unsplash / Sumit Sourav
Skift Take
A regional airline with an unusual hub choice, having India's country code in its name, is starting with short-duration flights. Fly91 is aiming for the sky with its ambitions.
Fly91, a new Indian airline named after the country's telephone code, is aiming to take advantage of India's rising middle class by focusing its services on second and third-tier cities.
The carrier is hoping to start operations around the last quarter of this year.
Heralded by Manoj Chacko, the former executive vice-president of the now-defunct Kingfisher Airlines and the man who set up the India business for risk management group Fairfax group, Fly91 will be the first airline to be based in India’s southwestern coastal city of Goa.
India-based investment firm Convergent Finance will anchor Fly91's initial $25 million investment. Harsha Raghavan, managing partner at Convergent Finance, will be Fly91's Chairman while Chacko will be the CEO.
Calling the announcement of a new airline a welcome move, Vishal Bhadola, an aviation consultant based in India, said, “The fact that the airline is be
