AirAsia India launches Jaipur, Chandigarh flights

New budget carrier AirAsia India Friday launched its services to Jaipur and Chandigarh from Bangalore.

"We have connected Jaipur and Chandigarh to our network with inaugural flights carrying full plane load of 180 passengers from Bangalore," airline chief executive Mittu Chandilya said in a statement here.

Bollywood actress Kulraj Randhawa and Olympian swimmer Rehan Poncha were among the guests who were present at the Jaipur airport to greet the first flight guests, who were also treated to a folk dances on arrival.

"We are committed to make air travel affordable to every Indian and make flying with us a memorable experience to all our passengers," Chandilya said.

The low-cost carrier, which launched its service June 12 here, operates daily flights to Goa, Chennai, Kochi, Jaipur and Chandigarh from Bangalore, using new Airbus A-320 aircraft.

The $30-million Indo-Malaysian joint venture has AirAsiaBerhad (with 49 percent equity), Tata Sons (30 percent) and Telstra Tradeplace (21percent) as partners.

Though a late entrant in the budget-carrier, the airline is competing with established rivals such as IndiGo, SpiceJet, Jet Lite, Go Air and national carrier Air India to garner a market share to sustain its business.

Its introductory fare has triggered a price war among budget carriers, with IndiGo and SpiceJet offering promotional and discounted fares on many routes they operate.

AirAsia India plans to connect five more cities in the first year of its operations, with majority of services in the south of Vindhyas, connecting metros with tier-two cities.

The airline's parent company (Air Asia) operates direct flights from Kuala Lumpur and Bangkok to Chennai, Bangalore, Kochi, Tiruchirappalli and Kolkata.