Air India on November 23 announced that it will start operating six new flights connecting Mumbai and Delhi to cities in the United States and Europe as part of its plan to expand global footprint.
Tata-Group-owned airline said it will start a new service connecting Mumbai with New York in February, and with Paris and Frankfurt in January-March quarter.
The airline will also resume its non-stop flights connecting Delhi with Copenhagen, Milan, and Vienna in February as well.
"This expansion comes as the airline continues to make progress in augmenting its fleet with newly-leased aircraft, and the return of existing aircraft to active service," the airline said.
Also Read | What will the restructured Tata airlines look like?
As part of its global expansion, Air India will operate a daily flight to John F Kennedy International Airport in New York using its B777-200LR aircraft, from February 14, 2023.
The new flights will take Air India's India-US frequency to 47 non-stop flights per week.
Similarly, the airline will restart its four weekly Delhi-Milan flights from February 1. Air India will also resume its thrice-weekly flights on both Delhi-Vienna route and Delhi-Copenhagen route from February 18 and March 1, respectively.
Air India also plans to start three-weekly flights between Mumbai and Paris and four weekly flights between Mumbai and Frankfurt from the January-March quarter.
Also Read | Old planes and wet leases drive new beginnings for India’s airlines
All the flights between India and Europe will be operated using Air India’s B787-8 Dreamliner.
"With the resumption of these flights, Air India will serve 7 cities in Europe with 79 weekly non-stop flights - 48 to the United Kingdom and 31 to Continental Europe," the airline said.
Bookings for the new flights, except Paris and Frankfurt, are now open, the airline said.
"The introduction of these new non-stop flights to New York, Milan, Vienna, Copenhagen, Paris and Frankfurt, is another step in that journey, which will accelerate as our aircraft fleet expands. We look forward to welcoming guests and sharing Air India’s warm Indian hospitality with them," Air India's chief executive officer Campbell Wilson said.
Tata Group's Air India had last month unveiled a comprehensive transformation plan Vihaan.AI which focuses on five-key pillar -- customer service, operations, tech, reliability, and hospitality -- to increase its domestic market share and international market share from India to 30 percent in the next five years.
The airline also plans to increase its international markets share and put it on a path to sustained growth, profitability, and market leadership.
Discover the latest Business News, Sensex, and Nifty updates. Obtain Personal Finance insights, tax queries, and expert opinions on Moneycontrol or download the Moneycontrol App to stay updated!
