In a recent development, Austrian Airlines – the flag carrier of Austria is planning to cease its Mumbai operations by March next year. A source in Mumbai close to the development said, “The carrier has been holding internal meetings since last month and I think by next week it will confirm the decision. If Austrian confirms the cancellation of Mumbai service, it will implement it by March next year.” Internationally, Austrian has announced the decision of ceasing Mumbai operations, but there is no official confirmation from the airline authorities in India. Currently, the carrier operates from Mumbai and Delhi to Austria. However, there is no talk about pulling out of Delhi.

In 2004, the airline announced daily service on Mumbai – Vienna route, which was reduced to five times a week earlier this year. The current economic slowdown is being cited as the reason for the planned withdrawal of services, similar to other airlines around the world that have been forced to discontinue operations on some routes. According to sources in the carrier, this is a result of overcapacity on the India – Europe route. Other carriers offering indirect flights to Austria are Swiss International Air Lines, British Airways, Lufthansa, Emirates, Aeroflot, Air India, Air France, Iran Air, KLM Royal Dutch, Qatar Airways, Northwest Airlines, Thai Airways and United Airlines.

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