Air India starts direct flight from Kol-Varanasi

Kolkata: A direct flight has been initiated by Air India connecting Kolkata with Varanasi- on Tuesday.

AI422, operated by a 122-seater Airbus 319 aircraft, will leave Netaji Subhas Chandra Bose International airport at 2.30 pm and reach Lal Bahadur Shastri International Airport in Varanasi at 3.30 pm on Tuesdays, Thursdays, Fridays and Sundays respectively. The return flight, AI 421, would leave Varanasi at 12.10 pm and arrive in Kolkata at 1.20 pm.

Varanasi, on the banks of the Ganges in Uttar Pradesh, is a religious hub with considerable flow of tourists to the holy shrines thronging the city and the Buddhist centre at nearby Sarnath. It is one of the richest repositories of Buddhist antiquities from the times of Emperor Ashoka. Varanasi is an important centre for handicraft — famous for its muslin and silk fabrics, carpets, perfumes and sculpture. Famous temples, forts and palaces make it a tourists' paradise. Varanasi is a centre of cultural activities and education, with one of the most reputed centres of academics — the Benaras Hindu University — and other reputed institutes adorning the city. Air India also connects Varanasi with Delhi, Mumbai, Agra, Khajuraho and Colombo.

Air India has been spreading its wings to expand its domestic network in sync with its Connect India mission.

The airline has also been bringing more international destinations in the air-map with non-stop direct connectivity with its Dreamliner B787 aircraft.

The flight between Kolkata and Varanasi fulfils a long-standing demand for a direct air-link by Air India.