Allow meal services on domestic flights: TajSATS to government

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TajSATS, the country’s largest inflight caterer of the Tata Group, has said the government should now look at to restart the meal services on all domestic flights as their home and institutional meal deliveries are not supporting their large workforce and capacities, according to a report in The Times of India. It also added that it has cut its expenses in the best way possible, without implementing any lay-offs and hopes for the business to bounce back soon. For all domestic flights below the two-hour duration, meals service or sale were not permitted since the second wave of the Covid-19 pandemic.

It also said that the number of domestic flights has increased to almost 70% of the pre-Covid times, but the on-flight meal deliveries and sales is below 50%, owing to the prevailing restrictions on food services. While international business is still at 30% of pre-Covid levels, it added.

In India, flight catering business has recovered to 60% of pre-Covid levels, as against 21% in the previous year.

Charter business expected to improve

Gulf carriers operates a significant share of international flights in and out of India, with the majority of these giants carrying meals for both flights to India and back from their mega hubs in the Gulf. For the India-Gulf leg, these carriers do not uplift meals from Indian flight caterers.

According to the publication, other major cities which are likely to be affected are Chennai and Kolkata, as almost zero international flights are operated from there at present. It also added that the continued restrictions to nearby destinations like Singapore, have also affected the industry enormously.

However, charter flight business is set to improve, following the government’s decision to allow international tourists flying on charters from mid-October.