On March 27 Air India commenced non-stop operations to London – Gatwick (LGW) where it will have 12 weekly flights from four Indian cities. These new services will boost leisure and VFR (friends and/or friends visiting) travel between the UK and South East India.
The first service was flight AI 169 operated on a Boeing 787 registered VT-ANX, which took off from Sri Guru Ram Dass Jee International Airport (ATQ) at 14:14 local time and landed at Gatwick Airport (LGW) at 17:48, after eight hours and four minutes.
Air India will fly from Amritsar (ATQ), Ahmedabad (AMD), Goa (GOI) and Kochi (COK) to London – Gatwick (LGW), each route will have three weekly flights and all services will be operated on Boeing 787-8 aircraft with 256 seat capacity in two classes (18 Business Class/238 Economy).
«Our substantial investment in customer service, new aircraft and overall branding will enable us to gain market share on key routes from the UK to India, as well as attract more business and leisure travelers to visit India itself. We are pleased to launch services from London Gatwick, allowing our passengers to have even more choice on how they enter India«, said Campbell Wilson, CEO of Air India.
The UK is Air India’s main European market where it has a weekly seat offering of 25,088 seats and operates 49 flights a week according to Cirium. In addition to its operations to Gatwick (LGW), the airline has 6 weekly operations to Birmingham (BHX) from Delhi (DEL) and Amritsar (ATQ) and is complemented by 31 weekly flights to London – Heathrow (LHR) from Delhi (DEL) and Mumbai (BOM).
Southeast London companies exported £479 million worth of goods to India, according to government figures. Currently, Gatwick Airport’s (LGW) long-haul network has 47 global destinations and the arrival of new operators support the economy with increased importance and exports through cargo flights on passenger aircraft.
«Some will take advantage of the wonderful cities and beaches India has to offer. Others will benefit from the multiple connections between two of the world’s largest economies, while many of our passengers will use the new routes to visit friends and family«, said Jonathan Pollard, Commercial Director at London Gatwick Airport.
See also: Air India resumes flights to Copenhagen
