India Increases Air Seat Capacity to Kuwait for First Time Since 2006

India’s decision to grant Kuwait a 50% increase in flying rights, the first such expansion in nearly two decades, seems to signal a softening stance on its traditionally cautious bilateral air agreements.

India has signed an agreement with Kuwait to increase the flying rights between the two countries by 50%, a move that has come after over 18 years since the last hike in 2006. With this, airlines will collectively be able to fly up to 18,000 seats each side per week between the two nations instead of the previous 12,000 seats.

The India-Kuwait route has been operating at full capacity for years, as airlines such as Air India Express, IndiGo, Akasa Air, Jazeera Airways, and Kuwait Airways operate about 40 flights a day on the route.

Kuwait has been seeking more flying rights to India for a long time. According to the Embassy of India in Kuwait, around 1 million Indian diaspora were settled in the Gulf country as of 2023. Indians form the largest expatriate population in Kuwait, accounting for 21% of the country’s total population and 30% of its total workforce.

The Fight for Bilaterals: Airlines across the Middle East, including those from Kuwait, have been seeking more bilateral rights from India. The issue came up as recently as June when Emirates President Tim Clark criticized India’s aviation policy, calling its tight bilateral air service agreements with countries like the UAE “not compatible” with its ambition to become an international aviation hub. He argued that open access is the foundation of any hub airport.

In an interview with Skift, Emirates Deputy President Adnan Kazim said that India needed more capacity from the entire aviation sector. “India is growing — population, economy, wealth, and even the number of Indians living abroad. They all need accessibility. They all need to be connected.”

Last June, Air India CEO Campbell Wilson said the airline’s plans to invest in new aircraft would