KOLKATA: Netaji Subhas Chandra Bose International (NSCBI) Airport, Kolkata, on Sunday, announced that Etihad Airways resumed direct flight services to Abu Dhabi from Kolkata.
A Kolkata airport official shared that Etihad Airways will operate flights between NSCBI airport, Kolkata and Abu Dhabi International Airport four times a week, on Tuesday, Thursday, Friday and Sunday.
On the inaugural day, 126 passengers travelled from Kolkata Airport to Abu Dhabi. The number of passengers arriving from Abu Dhabi on March 26, 2023, was 152.
Sources said that an Airbus A320 aircraft would be operated on this route. An airport official said the aircraft would depart from Kolkata at 21:05 pm and arrive at Kolkata from Abu Dhabi at 20:10 pm. The flight will reportedly offer eight seats in business class and 150 in economy class. Etihad Airways had withdrawn operations from Kolkata after the onset of Covid. Last month, Air Arabia Abu Dhabi, one of the low-cost carriers, announced the launch of its new direct route connecting Kolkata, with the UAE’s capital, Abu Dhabi.
The number of flights running on international routes from Kolkata is limited. As of yet, there is no direct flight connecting Kolkata and Europe, or even US; a demand that has often been raised. Fliers from Kolkata going to Europe or the US, and those coming to Kolkata from these destinations need to make stopovers at Delhi, Mumbai, Dubai, Doha, Abu Dhabi or Singapore because of the absence of direct flights to the city.