AIR INDIA EXPRESS RESTORES FULL WEST ASIA NETWORK

In a significant development for India-Gulf connectivity, Air India Express has fully restored its West Asia network with the resumption of services to Salalah (Oman) and Kuwait.

The Kozhikode–Salalah route resumed July 2, while Kozhikode–Kuwait services restart today, July 3, with one weekly flight expanding to three weekly from July 5. Bengaluru–Kuwait services resume July 4, increasing to three weekly from July 7. The airline has also reinstated Muscat–Mangaluru flights from July 3.

Air India Express currently operates around 40 weekly flights from Muscat to seven destinations across India, and approximately 780 weekly flights between India and West Asia, connecting 18 Indian cities directly with Gulf destinations. With operations to 13 destinations across Bahrain, Kuwait, Oman, Qatar, Saudi Arabia, and the UAE, the airline has also recently launched Navi Mumbai–Abu Dhabi, Guwahati–Abu Dhabi, Guwahati–Dubai, Bengaluru–Phuket, and Pune–Amritsar.

B2B Implications

The restored Gulf connectivity strengthens India’s position as a source market for the Middle East and opens two-way travel for leisure, business, and diaspora traffic. For tour operators, the expanded frequencies on key routes like Kozhikode–Kuwait and Bengaluru–Kuwait create new packaging opportunities.