KOLKATA: West Bengal Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee today inaugurated the long awaited Kolkata-Durgapur- New Delhi flight connecting the industrial city of Durgapur directly with the national capital.
Banerjee, who boarded the flight after inaugurating it here on her way to Delhi to meet Prime Minister Narendra Modi, said that Air India would start operating on this sector thrice-a-week from December 21. At present, Air India operates a small flight between Netaji Subhas Chandra Bose International (NSCBI) Airport in Kolkata and Kazi Nazrul Islam Airport (KNIA) at Andal in Durgapur. With this, New Delhi has been added to the route.
Initially, Air India will operate the 122-seater, Airbus-319 aircraft on this new sector every Monday, Wednesday and Friday. This service would help in growth of industry, commerce and tourism in the region, the Chief Minister said before boarding the inaugural flight.
She also complimented Bengal Aerotropolis Projects Limited (BAPL) for the world-class experience being offered to travellers at the country's first private greenfield airport in Durgapur. This new route, in addition to the existing connectivity between Durgapur and Kolkata, will ensure hassle-free travel for the 1.1 crore population of the catchment area.
The scheduled commercial flight [Flight No. AI 733] will depart from Kolkata at 8.30 AM and arrive in Durgapur at 9.00 AM. It will take off at 9.30 AM and reach New Delhi at 11.45 AM.
On the return leg, Flight No. AI 734 will take off from New Delhi at 12.35 PM and reach Durgapur at 2.40 PM. It will depart Durgapur's KNIA at 3.20 PM and reach NSCBI in Kolkata, at 3.50 pm.