·
Operationalises Government’s Hub-and-Spoke model from Varanasi
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‘Easy Connect’ flights to soon begin from 11 additional cities: Ahmedabad,
Amritsar, Chennai, Goa, Guwahati, Hyderabad, Kochi, Mumbai, Patna, Vadodara,
Visakhapatnam
VARANASI : Air India today marked a defining milestone in the Indian aviation
industry with the inauguration of its first 'Easy Connect' flight under the
Government of India's new hub-and-spoke framework, launching the transformative
model aimed at linking the length and breadth of India seamlessly with the
world, and vice versa.
The
inaugural Easy Connect service, flight AI1111, departed Varanasi at 09:23 AM
today, with international passengers on the flight connecting onward from Delhi
to 9 destinations outside of India, such as Dubai, Colombo, Jeddah, Riyadh,
Kathmandu, Phuket.
Mr Kinjarapu
Ram Mohan Naidu, Hon’ble Minister of Civil Aviation, Government of India, inaugurated
the first ‘Easy Connect’ flight from Varanasi’s Lal Bahadur Shastri
International Airport. At the occasion, he said: “Today we take a major step
forward towards realising our vision of making air travel more accessible and building
a future-ready, self-reliant Indian aviation industry that is efficient,
inclusive, and globally competitive. Our new hub-and-spoke model paves the way
for a monumental shift in how our citizens travel - where regardless of the
city one lives in India, one can begin their international journey from their
home city and travel across the globe with ease and confidence, on India’s own
wings.”
At
the launch, the Hon’ble Minister of Civil Aviation, Mr Kinjarapu Ram Mohan
Naidu, presented the first passenger to check-in for the inaugural Easy Connect
flight with a commemorative boarding pass. Also present at the occasion were Mr
Samir Kumar Sinha, Secretary, Ministry of Civil Aviation; Mr. Puneet Kansal,
Additional Secretary, Ministry of Civil Aviation; Mr Vipin Kumar, Chairman, Airports
Authority of India; Mr Campbell Wilson, Chief Executive Officer & Managing
Director, Air India; Mr P. Balaji, Group Head – Governance, Risk, Compliance
& Corporate Affairs, Air India; among other senior officials from government
agencies and Air India.
Nationwide
rollout
As
the first airline to begin the hub-and-spoke services, Air India is leading a
phased nationwide rollout that will progressively connect more domestic “spoke”
cities in addition to Varanasi to the airline’s primary hubs in Delhi, Mumbai, and
Bengaluru, unlocking seamless, end-to-end international travel for millions of Indians.
Over
the next few months, Air India aims to introduce ‘Easy Connect’ services from
several other Indian cities progressively, including Ahmedabad, Amritsar,
Chennai, Goa, Guwahati, Hyderabad, Kochi, Mumbai, Patna, Vadodara, and Visakhapatnam,
thus fundamentally changing the way Indian travellers access destinations
around the world.
Campbell
Wilson, Chief Executive Officer & Managing Director, Air India,
said: “India is a major force in global aviation, and yet, for decades a
meaningful share of Indian travellers flying abroad have routed their journeys
through overseas transit points - often at the cost of comfort and convenience.
Air India’s ‘Easy Connect’ flights is a response to that reality, and we are
grateful to the Government of India for its vision and support in enabling this
framework.”
Wilson
added: “In today’s India, a family in Varanasi, Amritsar, or Vishakhapatnam should
not have to navigate unfamiliar transit environments to reach the world. They
should be able to begin their international journey from their home city, on
their own soil, feeling confident, comfortable, and proud as they connect
seamlessly to global destinations.”
Nearly
25 million passengers travel long-haul to and from India annually, of which
close to 20 million are connecting travellers – and around 85% (approximately
17 million) of whom currently transit through overseas hubs rather than Indian
airports.
More
about Easy Connect flights
Air
India’s ‘Easy Connect’ services are flights from spoke airports to hub airports,
earmarked to provide seamless connectivity to international destinations beyond
the hub airports. This means travellers from cities that do not have direct
flights to many international destinations can now begin their international
journey from their home city with unprecedented ease:
·
Through check-in to final destination at the origin airport
·
Immigration clearance at the point of departure instead of doing so
at the hub airport
·
Seamless international transit through the hub airport, without having
to re-check baggage
This enables travellers to fly via
Delhi or Mumbai as international transit passengers, eliminating the need for
repeated processes and significantly reducing travel complexity and
unfamiliarity usually associated with the transit experience at a foreign hub.
Passengers
travelling on Air India’s ‘Easy Connect’ flights are required to complete
certain pre-departure and transit processes to ensure a seamless journey,
including mandatory DigiYatra enrolment for Indian nationals. Indian passport
holders connecting internationally on ‘Easy Connect’ flights are required to
enrol in DigiYatra and ensure their boarding passes are uploaded on the app prior
to departure. Web check-in and Customs declaration are not available at spoke
airports.
Bookings
for Air India’s Easy Connect flights under the new hub-and-spoke model are now
open across all channels, including Air India’s website, mobile app, contact
centre, and travel agents.
Flight
AI1111 from Varanasi-Delhi offers seamless connections to 17 international
destinations within four hours of arrival at Delhi, including London, Rome,
Milan, Frankfurt, Zurich, Dubai, Riyadh, Jeddah, among others.