THIRUVANANTHAPURAM: In a major boost to the air connectivity between Thiruvananthapuram and North Eastern states, IndiGo has started a new one-stop daily flight service from Thiruvananthapuram to Kolkata. The flight (6E-6169) departs from the Thiruvananthapuram domestic terminal at 1.40pm and arrives in Kolkata at 6pm via Chennai. The return flight (6E-563) departs Kolkata at 8.15am and arrives at Thiruvananthapuram at 1.05pm.
Earlier, passengers had to take two flights to travel in the Thiruvananthapuram-Kolkata sector. With the new service, the travel time has been reduced from 7.30hours to 4.30 hours. A non-stop service from Thiruvananthapuram to Kolkata is also under consideration. The weekly air traffic movement from Thiruvananthapuram airport is set to increase in the coming months, thereby bringing more connectivity to the capital. The new summer schedule will be effective from March 27, and this will have a multitude of new flight services with weekly traffic accelerating.
Akasa Air, the low-cost airline, is expected to start its service in March. Recently, Vistara started two new daily services to New Delhi, while Air India Express introduced more flights in the Thiruvananthapuram-New Delhi sector. The average number of passengers relying on Thiruvananthapuram airport has doubled in the past two years. Sources said there is a 120% increase in international flights and a 110% increase in domestic flights on average per week.