Aerospace

Stansted boosts global network with flights to India

Posted 8 October 2019

The first ever scheduled flights to India from London Stansted will take off later this month with the launch of Air India’s three-times a week service to Amritsar in the north west of the country.

Courtesy MAG

Flights start on 31st October and will be the only direct service between London and Amritsar, operated by state-of-the-art Boeing 787 Dreamliners offering business and economy classes.

London Stansted’s CEO, Ken O’Toole, said: “It is fantastic news that there will be a direct non-stop connection to Amritsar, Punjab from London Stansted Airport with Air India. Stansted is ideally situated to serve the Asian community in North and East London and across the East of England so we are delighted that Air India has recognised the customer demand for Amritsar.

“Just last week, we published our Gateway to Growth report that highlighted the strong and growing demand for long-haul services across the region. Our ambition is to use our spare runway capacity to build our long-haul route network and improve the UK’s connectivity with the rest of the world at a time when availability is in short supply across south-east airports. The welcome arrival of Air India is another positive step towards that goal.

“India is an important and popular destination for UK residents, both for tourism and business interests. We look forward to working with Air India to make this route a great success and further improving the connectivity between London and India in the coming years.”

David Rooke, Location Services Director at Invest ESSEX, said: "The introduction of this new direct route from London Stansted Airport to Amritsar by Air India is what I am sure will be the start of a number of new direct connections.

"London Stansted is positioned at the heart of the UK's Innovation Corridor, adjoining the globally renowned cities of London and Cambridge, which is home to many world leading universities, research and development organisations, technology, life sciences and quantum technology companies. This new Air India route will facilitate major business opportunities in both countries and can only strengthen business trade and investment building upon the substantial and growing Indian owned business base in Essex."