Airbus era
The first Airbus A319 arrived in Bhutan on 19 October 2004,[43] the date chosen after a Buddhist astrologer was consulted to ensure the aircraft arrived in Bhutan on an auspicious day in the Buddhist calendar.[44] Before entering service on commercial flights on 31 October 2004,[45] Drukair took their A319 on a country-wide flight in honour of the ascension of Crown Prince Jigme Khesar Namgyel Wangchuck to the Chhoetse Penlop.[44] The second aircraft was delivered by Airbus to Drukair in December 2004.[46] On 31 August 2012, Druk Air took delivery of a third Airbus A319.
In July 2005, the governments of India and Bhutan signed a new bilateral air services agreement which increased the allowable number of weekly flights between the two countries from 12 to 49. In addition to destinations already served by Drukair, the cities of Mumbai, Chennai and Guwahati were included in their services agreement, with Bhutan being granted fifth freedom rights from several Indian cities to onward destinations such as Yangon, Dhaka and Singapore.[47][48]
Domestic helicopter service was inaugurated in November 2005,[49] in line with a resolution by the Council of Ministers in April 2001 which stated that domestic services should be introduced. Thirty heliports across the country were identified, and the introduction of services saw, for example, the 550 km trip from Thimphu to Trashigang taking only one hour, instead of two to three days.[50] The Eurocopter Ecureuil helicopter operated by the Nepalese operator, Air Dynasty, had by January 2006 seen 30 hours of service, netting Drukair US$3,000 in profits.[49]
Flights to Dhaka, suspended since 29 December 2003, resumed on 23 October 2006,[51] and the airline was given rights to fly to Chittagong and Cox's Bazar by the Bangladeshi authorities.[52] The airline announced plans in July 2007 to start scheduled flights to Mumbai via Kathmandu from March 2008,[53] inline with the strategy of Drukair management to increase the number of Indian tourists travelling to Bhutan during the low season months of June through August and November through February.[54] These plans were put on hold in March 2008, due to Paro Airport not being able to handle night flights and the airline only being able to secure landing slots at Mumbai's Chhatrapati Shivaji International Airport at 3 am.[54] Plans for services to Hong Kong, Singapore, Abu Dhabi, Dubai and Sharjah were also shelved.[54]
The airline posted its first profit in 2007 of BTN 31.15 million.[55] The two BAe 146 aircraft were sold to Star Perú in October 2007 for US$3.3 million, and left Bhutan for Peru in November and December 2007.[56][57]
Druk Gyalpo Jigme Khesar Namgyel Wangchuck on 11 November 2007 issued a Royal Kasho establishing Druk Holding and Investments Limited, a holding company which would manage existing and future investments of the Royal Bhutanese government. As a result, seven government-owned companies, including Drukair, had their ownership transferred from the Ministry of Finance to the newly formed holding company.[58] Incorporated on 13 November 2007, Druk Holding and Investments announced in December 2007 that given Bhutan's tourism industry being reliant on Drukair, the head of the government agency overseeing tourism development in Bhutan would become the chairperson of Drukair, and would be responsible for improving the performance of the national airline.[59]
In March 2008, Drukair introduced a new uniform for its flight attendants, consisting of a contemporary kira and tego.[60] The uniforms were introduced for the centenary celebrations of the monarchy, as well as the airlines own silver jubilee.[61] The uniform was chosen by way of a competition in which five Bhutanese fashion designers submitted entries, with the winner receiving a BTN 75,000 prize.[60] The textiles used in the new uniform was chosen via a competition which was jointly organised by Drukair and the United Nations Development Programme to promote the Bhutanese textile industry and culture.[62][63]
Although the government of Bhutan goes to great lengths to prevent outside influences from intruding on Bhutanese culture, Drukair is not immune to problems which affect the airline industry and the world community at large. In June 2008, citing hikes in the price of oil and the need to contain operational costs, the airline reduced frequencies across its network and announced an increase in airfares to offset the increased costs, whilst taking advantage of the lower cost of jet fuel at Delhi, Kolkata and Bangkok airports.[64] Due to its small network which is reliant on fifth-freedom rights, Drukair regularly leases its aircraft to other airlines, such as Myanmar Airways International and Bangkok Airways in order to keep utilisation rates on its aircraft higher than they would under normal circumstances, whilst at the same time earning extra revenue.[65][66][67]
The airline was due to begin flights on 20 April 2009 to Bagdogra Airport in India, but had to delay the inaugural flight due to the lack of immigration and customs facilities at the airport.[68] The inaugural flight to Bagdogra Airport left Paro Airport on 18 June 2009, making Drukair the first international airline to operate into the airport. In Bagdogra, a ceremony was held which was attended by S. M. Krishna, the Indian Minister for External Affairs, and Lyonpo Ugyen Tshering, the Bhutanese Minister of Foreign Affairs.[69]
