Travel demand for Central Asia strong despite flight cuts

The closure of Pakistan airspace closure has increased duration of IndiGo’s Baku (Azerbaijan) and Tbilisi flights by around 45 minutes.
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VELANKANNI RAJ B

Demand for Central Asian destinations remains intact despite a reduction in capacity driven by easy visa norms and budget-friendly tour options, say travel companies.

Overall capacity between India and Central Asia fell by around 2 per cent in April on a month-on-month basis with IndiGo temporarily suspending flights from Delhi to Almaty (Kazakhstan) and Tashkent (Uzbekistan) until May 7.

The closure of Pakistan airspace has also increased duration of IndiGo’s Baku (Azerbaijan) and Tbilisi flights by around 45 minutes.

On the positive side, Kazakhstan’s Air Astana launched three weekly flight from Almaty to Mumbai from April 20. Azerbaijan Airlines is also starting a new service between Baku and Ahmedabad from July, adding to its existing flights in Delhi and Mumbai.

“Our demand pipeline for Central Asian destinations like Almaty, Tashkent and Baku continues to be robust, and this extends to summer and beyond. With high interest during the peak summer season— while demand-supply understandably sees some pressure— customers are happy to opt for alternate flights and date changes, rather than shift destination,” said Indiver Rastogi, President & Group Head (Global Business Travel), Thomas Cook (India) and SOTC Travel.

Cleartrip too sees growing demand for these destinations with no major dip in fresh bookings following airspace closure.

“Travellers are looking for new culturally rich experiences beyond the usual hotspots. Better flight connections, affordability and a sense of adventure is driving this trend,” said Manjari Singhal, Chief Growth and Business Officer, Cleartrip.

On a year-on-year basis, India-Central Asia capacity has grown 26 per cent measured by number of flights, shows data from analytics firm Cirium.

Indian and Central Asian airlines operate 18 services a day (two way) with Delhi handling nearly 90 per cent of flights. In fact, IndiGo had planned to add new destinations in Central Asia and expand frequency on its existing routes but will now have to go slow because of the airspace closure.

According to consultancy CAPA India’s mid-year outlook for 2025, Azerbaijan and Kazakhstan were among the fastest growing outbound travel markets from India witnessing over 100 per cent growth in first six to nine months of 2024 on year-on-year basis.

“We foresee strong and sustained growth in the Indian market. India’s steadily expanding economy, the rapid rise of the middle class and its large population present significant opportunities,” said Alan Atamukov, Country Manager, Air Astana. Air Astana said it has flown 1.2 million passengers between India and Kazakhstan since the launch of its India service in 2004.

Published on May 1, 2025