AI Express offers lower fares for cabin baggage-only passengers!

Tata Group’s budget airline Air India Express has offered lower fares to travellers flying with only cabin baggage. The budget carrier will give this benefit to travellers under the ‘Xpress Lite’ offer. The no-frills airline has put out such an offer to discourage travellers from taking check-in baggage after the Centre directed all airlines to dole out check-in baggage of travellers on belt within 30 minutes of landing. According to airfare variations as displayed on the website of Air India Express fliers will be able to save around Rs 500 if they opt for the offer.

More features of the Xpress Lite offer:

1. Under ‘Xpress Lite’ offer, the traveller can carry up to 10 kg cabin baggage free of cost at reduced airfare.

2. Apart from the usual 7 kg cabin baggage allowance, the airline offers additional 3 kg cabin baggage to travellers under the offer. This means the flier can take a total of 10 kg cabin baggage with himself  that too at reduced airfares.

3. Now the airline will display two types of airfares for every flight. One fare will be displayed when the traveller opts to take only cabin baggage with himself under the ‘Xpress Lite’ offer. The other type of fare would be displayed when the traveller needs to take check-in baggage with himself. Check-in baggage fare would, of course, be higher. These would be regular fares.

4. The flier can opt for the ‘Xpress Lite’ offer only when he books tickets on website of the airline (www.airindiaexpress.com) and on its app.

5. On the airline’s website, the ‘Xpress Lite’ offer is put on display on frontpage. The visitor does not need to look for the offer in any other corner of the page.

6. The traveller can opt to take check-in baggage also after he has opted for 10 kg cabin baggage option under this offer. But he will have to pay Rs 1,000 additional fare. In this case, he can take up to 15 kg check-in baggage with himself.

Currently, the difference between the regular airfare and airfares available under this offer is around Rs 500, but, according to aviation industry insiders, when, other airlines also follow suit, the gap will further widen leading to more savings for fliers.

Another matter of concern is that do aircraft in India have enough cabin space for 10 kg of baggage? Travellers already face storage space problem when they take only 7 kg cabin baggage with themselves!

Air India Express posted about the offer on social media handle ‘X’: