SpiceJet to fly to Colombo, Kathmandu by October
By IANSSaturday, September 11, 2010
NEW DELHI - Low-cost airline SpiceJet will start its international operations to Kathmandu and Colombo early next month.
“The carrier will flag off its first international flight from Delhi to Kathmandu Oct 7. This will be followed shortly by the first flight from Chennai to Colombo Oct 9,” the airline said Saturday in a statement.
According to the airline, base charges on the Chennai-Colombo route begin from Rs.999 (excluding taxes) and for New Delhi-Kathmandu route start from Rs.1,499 (excluding taxes).
“SpiceJet will fly its new generation Boeing 737-800 aircraft on these routes,” the statement added.
The airline also said that the daily flight from Delhi to Kathmandu will depart at 7.30 a.m. and reach the Nepalese capital by 9.00 a.m., and on return journey leave Kathmandu at 9.50 a.m. and reach the Indian capital at 11.20 a.m.
“Connecting Colombo and Kathmandu from India further strengthens our relationship and enables the passengers to explore these destinations of choice with India’s most preferred airline at the most fascinating fares,” SpiceJet’s chief commercial officer Samyukth Sridharan said, according to the statement.
For the Chennai-Colombo route the airline said the flights will depart at 12.45 a.m. and reach the Sri Lankan capital by 2.15 a.m., and will depart from there at 3.15 a.m. and reach the Tamil Nadu capital at 4.35 a.m.
In July, the airline placed an order of 30 Boeing jets to expand its fleet size to 58 planes over the next few years.
The airline met the government’s criteria for starting international operations in May as it completed five years of operations and had a fleet of more than 20 aircraft.
According to the Directorate General of Civil Aviation (DGCA), the airline has a total market share of 13.2 percent in the domestic market with 141 flights daily to 20 cities.
Jet Airways and its subsidiary JetLite, Kingfisher, Air India and Air India Express are the only other Indian airline companies that have the DGCA permit for international operations.
