Direct Flight Launched between Jabalpur-Kolkata | 23 Jul 2022

Why In News?

  • On July 22, 2022, Civil Aviation Minister Jyotiraditya M. Scindia and Minister of State for Civil Aviation General V.K. Singh (retd) launched a direct flight between Jabalpur and Kolkata by SpiceJet.

Key Points

  • Speaking on the occasion, Jyotiraditya M. Scindia said that there has been a massive expansion in air services in the country in the last one year. In Madhya Pradesh, which was operating 554 aircraft per week in July 2021, the figure has now gone up to 980.
  • Providing direct air connectivity to the people of Jabalpur and its surrounding areas will facilitate smooth movement of passengers. The new direct flight will give a new option to the general public to travel, which will boost tourism potential and accelerate the economic activities of both the regions.
  • He said Jabalpur was already connected to nine cities — Bengaluru, Delhi, Bilaspur, Hyderabad, Indore, Mumbai, Pune, Chennai and Bhopal. It is now being linked to the 10th city of Kolkata.
  • The air traffic in Jabalpur has increased to 182. Gwalior was connected to 4 cities in July 2021 with the movement of 56 aircraft, now this figure has increased to 100. Similarly, 308 aircraft were moving in Indore, which has increased to 468 and now it is connected to 20 cities.
  • The state capital Bhopal, which had air connectivity with five cities in July 2021, has now been connected to 13 cities and is carrying 226 aircraft. Khajuraho is also connected to Delhi and has 4 flights per week operating from here.