SpiceJet plans RAK hub expansion pending UAE-India flight rights

Exclusive: Indian budget carrier considering Czech Republic, Germany and Poland routes between RAK and Europe

SpiceJet chairman and managing director Ajay Singh, left, and Sheikh Khalid Bin Saud Al Qasimi, vice chairman of RAK's Investment and Development Office. India's low-cost airline SpiceJet said it would use now-grounded 737 Max aircraft at its new hub in the UAE once regulators approve the planes for flight. Courtesy RAK Media Office.Show less

Indian budget carrier SpiceJet will seek to expand its new hub in Ras al Khaimah to add European cities in the Czech Republic, Germany and Poland while also eyeing South Indian cities.

The hub's growth will depend on the expansion of bi-lateral aviation agreements between UAE and India to connect India's southern states such as Kerala to the northern emirate, Ajay Singh, SpiceJet's chairman, said in an interview.

"We will look to increase the bi-laterals between the two countries, which will be required to connect more Indian cities to RAK, so there's potential especially from the southern states," Mr Singh told The National. "There's a large number of European tourists already coming into RAK, so there's that inherent market  from Czech, Germany, Poland … those would be natural points to start from in eastern Europe to RAK and also India to eastern Europe through RAK."

India's second-largest airline last week unveiled plans to open its first international hub in Ras al Khaimah where it has also applied to set up a new UAE-based carrier. SpiceJet, a key customer of Boeing's embattled 737 Max jet also extended its support for the grounded plane by saying it would use the model in its RAK operations once it is certified to resume flights.

Mr Ajay said he spoke with Stan Deal, who was last week appointed president and chief executive of Boeing Commercial Airplanes (BCA), regarding the 737 Max.

"Stan Deal is a friend of mine, I’ve know him for a few years, and we’re definitely going to try and support him," Mr Singh said.

"They’re hopeful. They think technically they’ve done a lot of work and are pretty confident, it's really up to the regulators now."

SpiceJet, a Boeing and Embraer jet operator, is still committed to its Max orders but is continuing discussions with Boeing’s European rival Airbus for the A321LR and A321XLR narrowbody longer-range models.

Mr Singh declined to provide a time frame for how long the airline could wait for the Max to return to service before potentially switching to Airbus models.

"Airbus is our friend, we will continue to talk to them and see how it goes, but there’s no particular timeline … of course until it becomes unsustainable to hold on, but our attempt would be certainly to support Boeing," he said.

The Max grounding is delaying Boeing’s decision on whether to build a midrange jet called the “new midmarket airplane” or NMA.

SpiceJet is interested in the NMA but highlighted the urgency of returning the Max to commercial service first before Boeing reaches a decision on its NMA programme.

"We’ll look at the NMA, but first let’s get the Max back," Mr Singh said.

The low-cost carrier has about 200 Max planes on order.

"We have a very large number of Max on order and our priority definitely is to first know what that schedule looks like," he said. "We would have liked to start discussing the NMA but we understand that first we need to get the Max back."

Boeing reiterated last week it expected regulatory approval for the Max in the fourth quarter of 2019, after reporting a 53 per cent drop in quarterly profit. The Max, its most profitable jet, was grounded in March following two fatal crashes.