Air India begins daily flight from Bangalore to Dubai

Bangalore, Oct 26 (IANS) State-run national carrier Air India (AI) Sunday began a daily flight to Dubai from here, via Panaji in Goa five days and Pune in Maharashtra two days a week, an airline official said.

'We are offering a daily service from Bangalore to Dubai, with a return flight on the same day, connecting Panaji five days and Pune two days en-route,' AI official V. Chandrasekar told IANS.

The 145-seater Airbus-320 (IC 593) takes off from Bangalore at 12.10 p.m. and flies via Panaji Mondays, Tuesdays, Thursdays, Saturdays and Sundays to land in Dubai at 3.10 p.m. (local time). The return flight (IC 594) leaves Dubai at 4.15 p.m. (local time) and lands in Bangalore at 10.10 p.m. via Panaji.

On Wednesdays and Fridays, AI's IC 689 leaves Bangalore at 11.45 a.m. and flies via Pune to arrive in Dubai at 3.15 p.m. (local time). The return flight (IC 690) leaves Dubai at 4.15 p.m. and reaches Bangalore at 10.25 p.m. via Pune.

'Passengers from Mysore and other nearby districts of Karnataka will find this daily connection to Dubai convenient. In view of the steady passenger load factor and good response, the service has been extended from four days a week to daily,' Chandrasekar said.

In a related development, AI introduced a daily flight Sundays to New York from Bangalore via Mumbai.

The new flight (AI 623) takes off from Bangalore 8.45 p.m. and lands in Mumbai at 10.15 p.m. for boarding the non-stop flight (AI 141) at 00.45 a.m. to reach New York at 07.10 a.m.

'The brand new long-range aircraft - Boeing 777-200 - will have 238 seats, including eight in first class, 35 executive (business class) and 195 economy class, with a host of comforts on board, including in-flight entertainment and choicest cuisine,' Chandrasekar added.

Passengers can check in their baggage up to New York at Bangalore and complete customs/immigration formalities at the originating destination both ways.