Lakhs travel to US from Hyderabad, but no direct flight

HYDERABAD: Despite lack of direct flights to the US, Hyderabad sees the third highest air traffic to that country from India, shows data sourced from the International Air Transport Association (IATA). With an annual air passenger numbers of over 10 lakh, the city trails only behind New Delhi and Mumbai that have 48 and 14 weekly flights to the United States of America respectively.

In fact, as per industry estimates, at least 40% of the air traffic to America out of New Delhi comprises travellers from the two states of Telangana and Andhra Pradesh.

Though Bengaluru too has air connections to the US, its numbers are much lower.

Hyderabad’s air traffic, meanwhile, has prompted a discussion over the need for direct flights from the city’s Rajiv Gandhi International Airport (RGIA) to at least some popular destinations in the US – New York, Chicago and San Francisco.

Incidentally, pre-pandemic, the city had a direct connectivity to Chicago that was later shelved as part of “streamlining” of routes by Air India. “When operational, the 350-seater was over 90% full two times a week,” said Syed Hashmi, president of the Travel Agents Federation of India (TAFI – AP and Telangana) reiterating how RGIA, “India’s biggest airport spread over 5,500 acres, must have US connections”.

According to IATA’s data, Hyderabad’s air traffic to the US, which had dropped from 8.5 lakh in 2019 to below 3 lakh in 2020 and 2021 owing to Covid -19, touched 10.2 lakh during the 2023-24 financial year.


Flyers galore, direct flights still grounded

Hashmi said, “A bulk of this comprises students though the two states also have a large base of green card holders and business executives who travel on this route very frequently. Leisure too is a key contributor.”

Nagesh Pampati, president, Travel Agents Association of India (Telangana and AP chapter), made a similar observation. “With the IT boom in Hyderabad in recent years, there is tremendous demand for sectors such as San Francisco, Boston and others. Also, these connections from Hyderabad have the potential for very high yields. Airline operators must consider that and look at getting flights operational on this route urgently,” he said.

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