Edison Chen
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Now may be the time to fly in India as air tickets in the South Asian nation are the cheapest in the world thanks to cutthroat competition, according to a global transportation survey.
In India it costs just $10.20 on average to travel 100 kilometers on a commercial flight, according to the survey by GoEuro, a Berlin-based travel search website. That’s around half the cost of flying in China and less than one thirteenth the cost of flying in the most expensive country, Finland, where it costs $136.83 to fly the same distance.
Despite high fuel costs and airport fees, airlines in India are selling fares at prices that are often below cost. As they try desperately to grow market share almost all of them are losing money.
Air fares in India are so inexpensive that it is now cheaper to travel by air than take the train, according to the survey, which said a 100-kilometer train journey costs $11.31. A bus journey for the same distance costs $5.66.
Malaysia is the second cheapest country in the world to travel by air, costing an average of $11.26 for 100 kilometers. South Africa is ranked third least expensive at $11.46, according to the survey of 51 countries in five continents by GoEuro.
On the pricey side, Switzerland — where it costs $123.20 to fly 100 kilometers — is the second most expensive. Lithuania is third-most expensive for the same distance.
The competition to dominate the Indian skies has increased in recent months with the start of flights of a new budget airline backed by Malaysia’s AirAsia BhD, Tata Sons Ltd. and India’s Telestra Tradeplace Pvt.
