Airlines Announce New Flight Services: Routes, Schedule And Other Details

National carrier Air India will introduce regular flight services from Delhi to Nanded, Maharashtra from November 19, 2018, reported news agency IANS. "This flight will fulfil long standing demand of pilgrims, non-resident Indians and tourists from USA, Europe, UK, Australia, Gulf, Singapore, Bangkok and business community from Delhi...," the airline said in a statement on Tuesday. The airline will deploy an Airbus 319 aircraft on the sector, further said the report. The new route comes amid high competition in the country's civil aviation market. 

Earlier this month, Air India also announced the launch the of direct flight services from Bengaluru to London with effect from November 17, 2018. The service will be operated by a Boeing 787 Dreamliner aircraft.

Last week, budget carrier IndiGo announced Hong Kong as its fifteenth international destination. The carrier will operate its daily non-stop flight between Hong Kong and Bengaluru, effective from December 11, 2018 at a starting all-inclusive fare of Rs. 11,499. Similarly, SpiceJet will start its daily non-stop flight between Delhi and Hong Kong from November 22. 

Recently, GoAir also launched its first ever direct international flight to Phuket from Delhi. It also launched a direct flight to Male from Mumbai. GoAir started flying overseas nearly 13 years after it started domestic operations in November 2005.

Domestic airlines carried 913.95 lakh passengers in the first eight months of the current calendar year (January to August 2018), as against 754.11 lakh in the corresponding period a year ago, data from aviation regulator DGCA or Directorate General of Civil Aviation showed. That marked a year-on-year increase of 21.20 per cent in passenger traffic.

(With agency inputs)