Jet Airways India emailed me

[behramjee]

April 11th 07

For: Jet Airways Chairman

CC: Route Network Planning Department
Flight Scheduling Department

Subject: Suggestions for new 9W Boeing 777-300ER routes

Dear Sirs,

I would like to give my personal suggestions on what routes 9W should deploy its 10 Boeing 777-300ERs apart from the already decided BOM-BRU-EWR and BOM-PVG-SFO routes. It has been reported in the media that both SFO and EWR will each see six weekly frequencies from BOM hence 2 B 773ERs each will be exclusively dedicated for these two North American sectors. This leaves on hand 6 B 773ERs to play around with for which no final decision has been taken as to where they should be flown to. Therefore, I would suggest 9W to deploy these aircraft on the following three routes:

i. Daily DEL-GVA-IAD for which 2 B 773ERs are needed.
ii. Daily BOM-MAN-IAH for which 2 B 773ERs are needed.
iii. Daily DEL-BKK-SYD for which 2 B 773ERs are needed.

IAD-Washington DC is in desperate need for a direct same plane service to India as there is a large NRI population residing in the BWI/IAD geographical area + Carolina’s + high yield traffic potential due to both IAD and DEL being the political capital cities of India and USA respectively. In addition, there is also high yielding I-T traffic on this route that can be effectively tapped. Apart from the O&D market, if 9W can sign a SPA deal with United Airlines (UAL) from IAD (as it’s a major hub for the airline), it can offer excellent connections to all the major American cities inhabited by NRI community. Also by DEL being 9W’s second biggest hub after BOM, it too can offer via DEL seamless connections to BOM/HYD/BLR/MAA/AMD etc.

The reason why I chose the DEL-IAD route to be flown via GVA is because 9W will have the right to carry 5th freedom traffic on the lucrative GVA-IAD-GVA route which no airline currently offers a nonstop service on hence providing 9W with a monopoly position on this high yielding sector. The high yielding clientele will mainly fly First and Business class and come from various U.N. agencies, the World Bank, local multi national companies and local U.S./Swiss diplomats. Even on the DEL-GVA (Switzerland) route, 9W would enjoy a monopoly as Air Canada will be suspending its daily DEL-ZRH flight effective May 1st 07. Not only would yield on generated on passenger revenue be high, but the cargo potential on this route is also very bright due to the importance that DEL/GVA & IAD hold in the world’s economy today.

For the DEL-GVA-IAD route, I would propose the flight timings to be as follows:

9W 230 Dep DEL 0300 Arr GVA 0800
9W 230 Dep GVA 0930 Arr IAD 1300

9W 231 Dep IAD 2130 Arr GVA 1200
9W 231 Dep GVA 1330 Arr DEL 0100+1

*These flight timings, not only suitable for O&D + 5th freedom traffic but also allow excellent connections in both directions for passengers in India as on the outbound sector from DEL, passengers all across India have a choice of catching a 9W flight over the course of a whole day to DEL and the same applies for the inbound sector from IAD to DEL as 9W has a departures bank between 6-8am from DEL to all major Indian cities such as BOM/AMD/BLR/HYD/CCU/TRV which means a convenient 5 hour transit in DEL. The same applies in IAD, as with an early afternoon arrival time and a late nigh departure time, passengers from other major U.S. cities have plenty of time to catch a connecting flight on UAL-United or any other American carrier.

The second route that I would suggest 9W to fly using its B 773ER’s, is from Mumbai via Manchester to Houston. There are many reasons for me choosing such a route combination. To begin with, no airline flies nonstop to BOM, let alone India from MAN where approximately over 200,000 plus NRI’s reside and even a greater number in nearby areas of Leeds, Blackpool, Sheffield, East Midlands and Birmingham. The same can be said of IAH-Houston where approximately 200,000+ Indians too reside in the Houston/San Antonio area where also an Indian Consulate is situated. From IAH too, no airline provides a direct or same plane one stop service to India via Europe. With the astronomical growth of the Indian middle and upper class both in India and USA, more and more of them are paying a premium to fly airlines that either offer nonstop or one stop/same plane service from their originating city to India and vice versa. These NRI’s are paying premium because of the increase of their spare disposable incomes. In short, both markets i.e. MAN and IAH will see a lot of O&D traffic bound for BOM and other points in India.

Just like my earlier suggestion that which would see 9W enjoy a monopoly on the DEL-GVA-IAD route, the same can be applied here as no airline flies directly from India to Houston, no airline flies nonstop from MAN to IAH and no airline flies nonstop from MAN to BOM. On the MAN-IAH-MAN route, 9W has 5th freedom traffic rights for passenger and cargo. In IAH, 9W can tap into the wealthy NRI community residing there plus the high yielding premium oil/gas/energy/I-T traffic. To make the route to IAH work, 9W should fly to the city before Air India launches its own direct service using its newly ordered Boeing 777s. In IAH, 9W needs to also sign a SPA with CO-Continental Airlines so that it can get a lot of feeder traffic from California, Texas, Arizona, SEA, LAS and DEN bound for MAN and India on its flights.

For the BOM-MAN-IAH route, I would propose the flight timings to be as follows:

9W 232 Dep BOM 0300 Arr MAN 0800
9W 232 Dep MAN 0930 Arr IAH 1400

9W 233 Dep IAH 2100 Arr MAN 1100
9W 233 Dep MAN 1230 Arr BOM 0130+1

*These flight timings, not only suitable for O&D + 5th freedom traffic but also allow excellent connections in both directions for passengers in India as on the outbound sector from BOM, passengers all across India have a choice of catching a 9W flight over the course of a whole day to BOM and the same applies for the inbound sector from IAH to BOM as 9W has a departures bank between 6-8am from BOM to all major Indian cities such as BOM/AMD/BLR/HYD/CCU/TRV/COK/GOI which means a convenient 4 hour transit in BOM. The same applies in IAH, as with an early afternoon arrival time and a late nigh departure time, passengers from other major U.S. cities have plenty of time to catch a connecting flight on CO-Continental Airlines or any other American carrier.

If 9W follows my suggestions mentioned above, then 8 B 773ERs have been assigned routes thus far which are BOM-EWR, DEL-IAD, BOM-SFO and BOM-IAH which leaves 2 more B 773ERs to be accounted for. I feel that these 2 B 773ERs should be deployed on the DEL-BKK-SYD route offering a daily service. To begin with, there are over 220,000 Indian’s residing in Australia, and is officially considered the third largest migrant group in that country. The number of Indian students applying to study in Australia has boomed since 9/11 so much so that it’s the second largest student group behind Chinese students in Australian universities. In addition to these points, there is untapped potential existing in this market segment as no airline flies a same plane nonstop or one stop flight between SYD and DEL. Currently Qantas-QF offers a nonstop flight from SYD to BOM only but nothing to Delhi. Not only would 9W be targeting the Indian student traffic but also Australian tourists bound to India and the high yielding politicians/diplomats and corporative executives who conduct fly between the two countries on official business. Cargo importers/exporters too from Northern India bound for Southern Australia and vice versa would also welcome this flight with open arms and can fill up its belly with agricultural, electronic and other types of goods.

The DEL-BKK sector too sees large volume of traffic on a consistent year round basis. Thai Airways-TG dominates this sector with a daily 400 seater Boeing 777-300 operation alongside a daily B 737 / A 320 flight of 9W and IC respectively. Personally speaking, I feel that 9W’s daily service to BKK using a Boeing 737-900 doesn’t do the route justice as its too small of an aircraft to use a densely traveled route where there is lots of O&D demand + 6th freedom SPA traffic to be carried on. It would be ideal that if 9W launched SYD via BKK from DEL, it could have a double daily service from DEL to BKK with the current B 737 service in addition to the B 773ER service which would continue on to SYD from BKK. If 9W does this, it stands to grab a large chunk of TG’s market share on this key route as its in-flight product in all 3 cabin classes on board its Boeing 777-300ERs is far superior to Thai’s and Indian Airlines. It will even have 5th freedom rights on the busy BKK-SYD route which is currently flown by EK, BA, QF and TG. Only BA’s in-flight product on their B 747-400s which fly this route can match the standards of 9W’s as QF’s B 744s, EK’s B 773ER and TG’s B 744s is sub-standard in all 3 cabin classes compared to 9Ws B 773ER’s.

If the response and revenue is good for the DEL-BKK-SYD flight, then after a year, 9W can launch a BOM-BKK-MEL flight using an A 330-200 and time it along the similar pattern of the DEL-SYD flight so that it can create a mini hub at BKK which would allow SYD & MEL passengers to fly on 9W via BKK to either BOM or DEL and vice versa for Indian passengers from BOM/DEL to fly via BKK to either SYD or MEL.

For the DEL-BKK-SYD route, I would propose the flight timings to be as follows:

9W 250 Dep DEL 1400 Arr BKK 2000
9W 250 Dep BKK 2130 Arr SYD 0930+1

9W 251 Dep SYD 1530 Arr BKK 2200
9W 251 Dep BKK 2330 Arr DEL 0200+1

*These timings enable excellent inbound and outbound connections from DEL to all major Indian metro cities and convenient too for O&D passengers on all sectors. 9W already has the early morning daily arrival into BKK from DEL which would target O&D passengers + 6th freedom traffic bound for other parts of Thailand and the Far East where as this flight would mainly target O&D passengers + onward 5th freedom traffic bound for SYD from BKK.

[behramjee]

24 April 2007

Dear Mr. Ghadially,

This is with reference to your e-mail dated April 13,2007 addressed too our Chairman, Mr. Naresh Goyal. I am responding to you on Mr. Goyal’s behalf.

At the onset, we to thank you for your interest in Jet Airways and the
valuable suggestions given towards operating the B 777 on the international routes. We would like to inform you that we would be operating a daily frequency on BOM/BRU/EWR and BOM/PVG/SFO with the B 777. We would also be using the B 777’s on the two Mumbai – London and one Delhi – London route.

The routes have been decided keeping in view a mix of variables i.e.
commercial/ infrastructure/economic etc.

Nevertheless, we take cognisance of your suggestions and will be evaluating the same for our future expansion in the international arena.

Mr. Ghadially, we once again thank you for your valuable suggestions.

Sincerely,
Wolfgang Prock-Schauer
Chief Executive Officer
c.c: Mr. Naresh Goyal

[behramjee]

9W has officially confirmed that new routes to LAX and ORD will be routed via BRU which it has chosen as its EU hub.

9W also will be flying A 332s nonstop from MAA/BLR/CCU to BRU to feed its U.S. and YYZ bound flights.

[malpensa26]

dude you really got alot of free time or are you getting paid for it...just curious

[behramjee]

neither...just have an interest/hobby