Leading aircraft charter specialist, Air Charter Service, has said that the company’s Indian offices have had an exceptional first half of the year, with strong growth across all divisions.

Ashish Wastrad, Air Charter Service India’s CEO, commented, “Our offices in Mumbai and New Delhi have had an amazing first six months of the year – we’ve seen increases in both passenger and cargo numbers driving up income by 42% year-on-year.

“The growth in our passenger divisions has been fuelled by a lot of flights for sports events, weddings, movie stars and singers. We have also seen incredible growth in our cargo division, driven by pro-industry government initiatives, e-commerce and maritime trade uncertainties.

“A proud moment for the team and I came at the beginning of last month, when we chartered a B777 to fly the victorious Indian cricket team home from Barbados after winning the T20 World Cup. Hurricane Beryl had scuppered their original travel plans, so they approached us, and we had to work swiftly to arrange everything for them. After their arrival into Delhi the team went to meet our Prime Minister to be congratulated. Following that, we arranged a flight on an A321 to take them to Mumbai – where the aircraft received a water cannon salute – to have their victory parade.

“Due to the exceptional numbers so far this year, we have had to expand our teams, both here in Mumbai and also in our New Delhi office, in order to cope with the demand. We are looking to expand the teams further and continue the growth in the second half of the year.”