Jet Airways woos customers with fixed price flight coupon booklets
MUMBAI: In a move to attract more corporate travellers to its international network, Jet Airways is selling coupon booklets that will give the customer access to a number of flights at a fixed price.
The Jet Global Pass, the carrier said, enables the customer to hedge against fluctuations in fares. When booked late, the coupon holder gets the benefit of a lower fare than the prevailing price for spot-booking. If booked early, Jet has the advantage of getting higher yields than what it is selling its inventory for at that time. There is no cancellation or rescheduling fee.
Each booklet consists of four coupons. An economy class booklet comes for Rs 52,000 while one on the business class costs Rs 1.2 lakh. Two coupons — each worth Rs 13,000 — would give a one-way economy-class ticket to Dubai, while with three, one could fly to London. A trip to Toronto in the economy class will require the flyer to exchange all four coupons.
"Please remember that the advantage is really big for the last-minute traveller who gets a ticket at a predetermined price when he or she would have to pay a lot more on a spot-booking," Praveen Iyer, vice president of commercial at Jet Airways, told ET. Jet is one among just three global airlines offering this product, he claimed.
The coupons can be used for travel only on flights operated by Jet and not on code-shared operations. The probability of the coupon holder getting a confirmed ticket is up to 90%, even when booked at the last minute, he said.
Coupons can be used for six months from purchase. Validity can be extended by three months for a fee.
The product ties in with Jet's expansion of its international flights. The airline ferries the largest chunk of international traffic out of India, operating more than 130 overseas flights. Last financial year, it flew 6,350,401 international passengers, accounting for 75% of the incremental international traffic by Indian carriers in the year, according to a note by Sydney-based consultant CAPA-Centre for Aviation.
More recently, the airline announced it will have five international gateways — Abu Dhabi, Amsterdam, Paris, London and Singapore — beyond which it will ferry traffic mostly through code-share agreements with other carriers.
Jet has for the past few years sold coupon booklets on its domestic flights. Last year, it sold 10,000 booklets, or 40,000 coupons.
The coupons are now available only at Jet's airport call centres or with travel agents. It is making efforts to allow online bookings using the coupons, Iyer said.
The Jet Global Pass, the carrier said, enables the customer to hedge against fluctuations in fares. When booked late, the coupon holder gets the benefit of a lower fare than the prevailing price for spot-booking. If booked early, Jet has the advantage of getting higher yields than what it is selling its inventory for at that time. There is no cancellation or rescheduling fee.
Each booklet consists of four coupons. An economy class booklet comes for Rs 52,000 while one on the business class costs Rs 1.2 lakh. Two coupons — each worth Rs 13,000 — would give a one-way economy-class ticket to Dubai, while with three, one could fly to London. A trip to Toronto in the economy class will require the flyer to exchange all four coupons.
"Please remember that the advantage is really big for the last-minute traveller who gets a ticket at a predetermined price when he or she would have to pay a lot more on a spot-booking," Praveen Iyer, vice president of commercial at Jet Airways, told ET. Jet is one among just three global airlines offering this product, he claimed.
The coupons can be used for travel only on flights operated by Jet and not on code-shared operations. The probability of the coupon holder getting a confirmed ticket is up to 90%, even when booked at the last minute, he said.
Coupons can be used for six months from purchase. Validity can be extended by three months for a fee.
The product ties in with Jet's expansion of its international flights. The airline ferries the largest chunk of international traffic out of India, operating more than 130 overseas flights. Last financial year, it flew 6,350,401 international passengers, accounting for 75% of the incremental international traffic by Indian carriers in the year, according to a note by Sydney-based consultant CAPA-Centre for Aviation.
More recently, the airline announced it will have five international gateways — Abu Dhabi, Amsterdam, Paris, London and Singapore — beyond which it will ferry traffic mostly through code-share agreements with other carriers.
Jet has for the past few years sold coupon booklets on its domestic flights. Last year, it sold 10,000 booklets, or 40,000 coupons.
The coupons are now available only at Jet's airport call centres or with travel agents. It is making efforts to allow online bookings using the coupons, Iyer said.
