Air India has been sustaining losses on the Mumbai-Tel-Aviv line.
Air India, India’s national airline, on Tuesday stopped flying to and from Israel. Starting April, a code sharing agreement will take effect between it and El-Al.
In 1997, Air India flew 25,278 passengers to and from Israel on board 207 flights. El-Al in the past flew to two destinations in India - New Delhi, the capital, and Mumbai in the west of India. In mid-1997, the company decided to discontinue flights to New Delhi, but may now resume them.
Air India held two weekly flights on the Mumbai -Tel-Aviv line, using Airbus 310 planes with a seating capacity of more than 200. The flights were discontinued due to losses.
Today, no Far Eastern airlines fly to Israel. South Korea’s Korean Air announced the discontinuation of flights to Israel, at the end of 1997, due to its economic crisis. Many Far Eastern airlines are presently represented in Israel without having direct flights.
Published by Israel's Business Arena March 26, 1998