IndiGo to operate non-stop regular Kolkata–Shanghai services

New Delhi: India’s largest airline firm, IndiGo, on Monday announced the launch of its daily non-stop service between Kolkata and Shanghai, further strengthening air connectivity between India and China.

The airline said the new route marks a significant milestone in its international expansion and builds on the recent resumption of flights from Kolkata and Delhi to Guangzhou.

The Kolkata-Shanghai service is being operated using Airbus A320neo aircraft.

With the addition of Shanghai, IndiGo said it is expanding travel options for both business and leisure passengers, while catering to growing demand for trade and tourism between the two countries. Passengers from cities such as Delhi, Mumbai, Bengaluru, Hyderabad, Chennai, Ahmedabad, Pune, Jaipur and Bhubaneswar will be able to connect to Shanghai via Kolkata.

Vinay Malhotra, Head of Global Sales at IndiGo, said the new route would further strengthen connectivity between India and China and support business as well as cultural exchanges.

He added that IndiGo now operates 21 weekly flights to mainland China, including services to Guangzhou from Delhi and Kolkata.

As per the schedule, flight 6E 1709 will depart Kolkata at 9:45 PM and arrive in Shanghai at 4:40 AM the next day, while the return flight 6E 1710 will leave Shanghai at 5:40 AM and reach Kolkata at 9:05 AM.

Shares of IndiGo’s parent, InterGlobe Aviation Ltd, were trading at Rs 4,010.30 on the BSE, down around 2 per cent from the previous close.

Earlier, the airline had announced over 30 new routes from Navi Mumbai International Airport between March 29 and April 23.

The carrier will connect the airport to cities such as Agra, Ayodhya, Bagdogra, Belgaum, Chandigarh, Diu, Kannur, Kolkata, Patna, Rajkot, Srinagar, Varanasi and Visakhapatnam, among others. With this, IndiGo will operate over 400 weekly departures from Navi Mumbai, enhancing regional connectivity, it said.

IANS