Travel Market Insights
Akasa Air Has a New Ancillary Service: Visa Assistance
Budget airline Akasa Air has introduced visa services as part of its ancillary services. For this, the carrier has partnered with visa solutions provider Udaan India to provide personalized and end-to-end visa assistance.
The company has integrated the service with its website. In a statement, the airline said that the service will allow business and leisure travelers to apply for visas to over 100 countries digitally.
“The service provides access to a team of professionals for tailored assistance in navigating the intricacies of visa processing, ensuring accurate documentation, timely submissions, and efficient follow-ups,” the airline said. It said that the entire process from registration to the final approval will be facilitated. Customers will also be able to track their application in real time.
Akasa has also announced an introductory limited-period discount of 20% on visa fees for its service.
Akasa’s Focus on Ancillary Services: Last month, Akasa said that it was expanding its ancillary services portfolio to drive revenue. This was a key focus for the airline in the 2025 financial year, and it now offers 25 ancillary products.
The add-on services offered by Akasa range from basics such as seat selection, extra seats, meals, excess baggage, and priority travel, to traveling with pets, getting an earlier flight, holiday packages, hotels, car rentals, and now, visa services. These services, Akasa said, are helping generate additional revenue for the company and allowing the airline to build a diversified revenue stream.&
Key Points
- The U.S. is launching a 12-month pilot program requiring visa bonds of up to $15,000 for some tourists and business travelers from countries with high visa overstay rates.
- The program is expected to impact around 2,000 applicants and applies only to B-1 and B-2 visa categories.
- A separate $250 Visa Integrity Fee is also being introduced, raising concerns about U.S. competitiveness in the global travel market.
Summary
The United States is set to implement a 12-month pilot program requiring selected travelers from countries with high visa overstay rates to post bonds of up to $15,000 when applying for B-1 and B-2 visas. The program, affecting an estimated 2,000 applicants, gives consular officers discretion in setting bond amounts and is intended to address national security concerns. Additionally, a new $250 Visa Integrity Fee will be imposed on most nonimmigrant visa applicants, potentially making U.S. visitor visas among the most expensive in the world and raising concerns about the country’s attractiveness to international travelers.
Air travel in Europe is undergoing a quiet transformation, with new cross-border data offering an insight into how the “average flight” is changing.
Using statistics compiled by Eurocontrol – an air traffic control organization spanning more than 40 member states – it is possible to identify key trends about a typical flight in 2024, and learn more about where European aviation is heading:
Flights are Getting Longer
The average flight distance in Europe hit 1,157 kilometers last year – that’s just over 1,000 nautical miles. This 17 km increase on 2023 might sound modest, but it’s part of a much larger structural shift. Figures show a clear upward trend, with the 2024 average now 107 km further than in 2018.
The reasons behind this are numerous, but there are some big-picture considerations. Domestic and regional routes are in long-term decline, often
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Galaxy operates hotels across nine U.S. states, representing brands, such as Choice Hotels International, Hilton, IHG, and Marriott. Its CEO Jagmohan D
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