Why United Is the Only U.S. Airline That Flies to India

NEW YORK ( TheStreet) -- Between the second- and third-largest countries in the world -- India and the United States -- U.S. airlines can manage to operate only two daily flights: United (UAL - Get Report) flies from Newark, N.J., to Mumbai and New Delhi.

The paucity of U.S. service in what would seem to be a desirable market is a key element of the argument by the big three U.S. carriers and their unions that heavily subsidized Gulf carriers are able to poach traffic that would be carried by U.S. airlines and their alliance partners.

Growth in the Gulf carriers' U.S. service "has been most heavily concentrated to date in the Indian subcontinent, which currently accounts for 22% of all U.S.-Asia bookings," the big three carriers said in a recent report on the massive government subsidies provided to Emirates, Etihad Airways and Qatar Airways.

Yet the Indian market is a complex one, characterized by low yields and a lack of business traffic, said aviation consultant Bob Mann. "The aggregate market size is huge, but unit revenues are very low," Mann said.

In general, he said, U.S. carriers would continue to serve most markets in India through partnerships, with or without the Gulf airlines, although the increasing number of Boeing (BA) 787s in the U.S. fleet could open more markets. By contrast, Gulf carriers led by Etihad are heavily involved in India.