Jet Airways has commenced its new non-stop service between Mumbai and Manchester, further expanding the airline’s connectivity in the United Kingdom (UK). This new service is the first non-stop service connecting India, via its economic capital with Manchester, the third largest city in the UK.
With the launch of its fifth non-stop service to/from the UK, Jet Airways is now the largest carrier between Mumbai and the UK and Manchester, the 21st international destination on the carrier’s network.
Ahead of the launch of its inaugural service from Mumbai Chhatrapati Shivaji Maharaj International Airport, Jet Airways conducted a multi-faith prayer followed by ceremonial lamp lighting ceremony to mark the occasion of its inaugural flight. This inaugural function was led by Mr Raj Sivakumar – Senior Vice-President, Worldwide Sales & Distribution, Jet Airways. Mr. Tom Mottershead, Deputy Director for Trade and Innovation, British Deputy High Commission, dignitaries and invitees from airport (MIAL) graced the occasion with their presence. This was followed by a ceremonial ribbon cutting and handing over of the boarding passes to guests by senior Jet Airways officials to mark the flight’s launch.
Raj Sivakumar, senior vice-president, Worldwide Sales & Distribution, Jet Airways, said, “The launch of the maiden flight between Mumbai and Manchester is a proud moment for us. Guests travelling to the United Kingdom will now have multiple options to travel to destinations of their choice. Our new five days-a-week non-stop service brings Manchester into our global network, expanding our footprint as well as the choice of connectivity to and from the United Kingdom for our guests. The new service will enable Jet Airways to offer over 8,500 seats every week, making it increasingly convenient for business guests, leisure travellers as well as students, to travel between India and the UK, strengthening commerce as well as tourism ties between the two countries.”
Sivakumar further said, “Manchester also becomes an additional gateway to North America with seamless connectivity to New York, Atlanta and other destinations with our code share partners Virgin Atlantic and Delta. Also our Manchester-based guests can seamlessly connect on Jet Airways’ flights to Hong Kong, Singapore, Bangkok and Colombo.”
The new flight assumes even greater importance with the ‘The Manchester-India Partnership’ championed by Prime Minister of India, 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.
Since announcing the new service in May this year, the airline has been working to strengthen additional connectivity choices for guests arriving in Manchester, who can now connect onwards to North America and Europe or even within the UK, via flights with Jet Airways’ partner carriers including Virgin Atlantic, KLM Royal Dutch Airlines, Air France and other interline partners. Jet Airways’ guests and those of certain partner carriers will also be able to enjoy mutual earn and burn of miles on each other frequent flyer programmes as per agreement between the respective airlines.
Conversely, guests flying via Mumbai will be able to access Jet Airways’ network of 46 destinations within India. 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. Some of the domestic destinations to which the new service will seamlessly connect to from Mumbai include Ahmedabad, Amritsar, Aurangabad, Bengaluru, Bhopal, Bhuj, Chandigarh, Chennai, Coimbatore, Dehradun, Delhi, Goa, Hyderabad, Indore, Jaipur, Kolkata, Nagpur, Raipur, Rajkot, Udaipur, and Vadodara.