Jet Airways, India’s premier international airline is pleased to announce that from 5th November 2018, it will launch the first non-stop service between Manchester and Mumbai. Further strengthening its flight offering in the United Kingdom and Jet Airways’ commitment to opening up travel to India for UK business and leisure travellers, the service will operate four days a week including Monday, Thursday, Saturday and Sunday.
Manchester will become the 66th addition to the Jet Airways network and its 21st international destination. With the introduction of the new flight – the carrier’s 5th non-stop service to/from the UK, Jet Airways will also become the largest carrier between Mumbai and the UK.
The launch of this new service will provide seamless connectivity to nearly 35 domestic destinations to and from India which include Ahmedabad, Vadodara, Bhuj, Bhopal, Bengaluru, Kolkata, Coimbatore, Delhi, Goa, Hyderabad, Indore, Aurangabad, Jaipur, Chennai, Nagpur, Rajkot, Raipur, Udaipur, via the airline’s HUB, Mumbai.
Similarly, quick connections to beyond points on Jet Airways’ international network such as Bangkok, Colombo, Hong Kong, Singapore, Dhaka and Kathmandu, will now be available. The new service will complement the carrier’s existing three daily, non-stop services between London Heathrow and Mumbai, and once a day service between London Heathrow and Delhi. The launch of the new route comes one year after the airline launched three new international services last year on 29th October to Bengaluru, Chennai and Mumbai, from Amsterdam, Paris and London respectively.
Vinay Dube, Chief Executive Officer, Jet Airways said: “We are extremely pleased to begin a new chapter in our decade-long relationship with the United Kingdom. The new service will bring Manchester into our global network, reinforcing our global footprint, as well as expanding the choice of connectivity to and from the United Kingdom for our guests with the four days a week, non-stop service. With the new flight, Jet Airways will have over 8,000 seats on offer every week, making it increasingly convenient for both business and leisure travelers to travel between the UK and India. This will deepen both commerce and tourism ties between the two countries”.
Given Manchester’s position as Europe’s second largest digital hub, the new service between Manchester and Mumbai is likely to benefit a large number of business travellers, as well as making travel more convenient for the growing Indian community, including both families and students, now residing in and around Manchester and holiday makers in the region. It will also connect surrounding cities such as Liverpool, Leeds and Sheffield to India.
Manchester Airport CEO Andrew Cowan, who said: “Securing a direct service to one of India’s major cities is the product of a lot of hard work over a long period of time to forge closer ties between Manchester and this globally significant economy. We have worked, along with a range of partners, to create a compelling case for why our city – and the wider North – is a great place to visit, invest in and do business with. I am delighted Jet Airways have recognised this by launching what I’m sure will be a hugely popular service, not least for the 500,000 people of Indian origin living across the North. Direct connectivity to the world’s most important markets is key to creating a prosperous and internationally competitive Northern economy, and a balanced and outward facing UK. This route will deliver a major boost to businesses looking to export to the world’s fastest-growing economy, as well as helping to attract Indian visitors and investors to the North. We look forward to working with Jet Airways on launching the Mumbai service in the months ahead.”
The flight, 9W 129 will depart from Manchester Terminal 2 at 0935 hrs (Local time) and arrive in Mumbai’s Terminal 2 at 0040 hrs (Local time). Return flights from Mumbai will leave at 0230 hrs (Local time) and arrive in Manchester at 0755 hrs (Local time). Guests arriving at Jet Airways’ hub in Mumbai will be able to conveniently connect onwards to 44 domestic destinations in the airline’s pan India network. They can also connect onwards to other destinations in South East Asia including Colombo, Dhaka, Kathmandu, Bangkok, Hong Kong and Singapore.
The new flight assumes even greater importance with the ‘The Manchester-India Partnership’ championed by Hon’ble Prime Minister of India, Sh. Narendra Modi, to help strengthen cultural and business ties between the two economies. The launch of the new service will also support with the recommendations of the UK Government, which has been promoting connectivity to other key cities in the UK, besides London Heathrow.
Passengers travelling on this route will be able to take advantage of the benefits of Jet Airways’ A330-200 aircraft comprising of 254 seats including 18 in Premiere which will operate on this service. The A330 is a world-class product providing the luxury of spacious seating in quiet cabins, where guests can experience Jet Airways’ highly acclaimed in-flight service characterised by fine dining, together with a choice of their preferred meal, as part of the ‘Dine Anytime’ concept. Guests can also enjoy endless hours of the airline’s carefully curated audio-video programming comprising favourite Hollywood and Bollywood blockbusters, popular TV shows and TV Shorts, business news and audio compilations with the airline’s award-winning Inflight Entertainment system – JetScreen.
