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Northwest Airlines to double flights to India

Northwest Airlines will offer daily flights from Amsterdam to Bombay and New Delhi from October 29, 2000. The airline currently operates three flights a week to New Delhi and four flights a week to Bombay from Amsterdam.

New schedule from October 29, 2000:

Bombay-Amsterdam-Bombay
- NW 39 will depart daily from Bombay at 0140 hours and reach Amsterdam at 0700 hours.
- On the return journey NW 68 will depart daily from Amsterdam at 1040 hours and reach Bombay at 2340 hours.
New Delhi-Amsterdam-New Delhi
- NW 35 will depart daily from New Delhi at 0130 hours and reach Amsterdam at 0640 hours.
- On the return journey NW 36 will depart daily from Amsterdam at 1045 hours and reach New Delhi at 2325 hours.

Schedule effective till October 28, 2000:

Bombay-Amsterdam-Bombay
- NW 58 departs Amsterdam at 1045 hours on Tuesdays, thursdays, Saturdays and Sundays and reaches Bombay at 2250 hours.
- On the return journey NW 57 departs Bombay at 0050 hours on Mondays, Wednesdays, Fridays and Sundays and reaches Amsterdam at 0705 hours.
New Delhi-Amsterdam-New Delhi
- NW 37 departs from New Delhi at 0055 hours on Tuesdays, Thursdays and Saturdays and reaches Amsterdam at 0650 hours.
- On the return journey NW 36 departs Amsterdam at 1045 hours on Mondays, Wednesdays and Fridays and reaches New Delhi at 2225 hours.

Northwest's alliance partner KLM flies to Delhi and Bombay on all the other days of the week. KLM will continue to operate four weekly flights to Delhi and three to Bombay but will reschedule six of the flights October 29.

AFP

No night flights to Trivandrum

Kuwait Airways has reportedly shelved its plan to start night flights from Trivandrum as the International Airports Authority of India (IAAI) has not been able to provide adequate logistics for round-the-clock operations by September 1.

Several airlines which were eagerly watching the (IAAI) coming up with logistics as promised by Union Minister for Civil Aviation Sharad Yadav, have also grounded their plans. In fact, the airline had even advanced arrival and departure of its two flights as part of the plan.

According to the proposed schedule, its flights KU 365 on Tuesday and KU 366 on Saturday would have arrived at Trivandrum at 0420 hours instead of 0615 hours and would have left at 0530 hours against the present timing of 0730 hourrs.

UNI

Direct to Calcutta. From London

British Airways will run direct services between Heathrow, London, and Calcutta from October 29. The airline will also introduce an additional flight between the two sectors from October 29. The airline currently flies twice a week between London and Calcutta, via Delhi.

New schedule effective from October 29, 2000:

BA 145 will depart London at 1000 hours on Wednesdays, Fridays and Sundays and arrive into Calcutta at 0115 hours.
On the return journey, BA 144 will depart Calcutta at 0710 hours on Mondays, Thursdays and Saturdays and arrive into London at 1240 hours.

Schedule effective till October 28, 2000:

BA 143 departs London at 2155 hours on Mondays and Fridays and arrive into Calcutta at 1500 hours.
On the return journey, BA 142 departs Calcutta at 2020 hours on Tuesdays and Saturdays and arrives into London at 0455 hours.

The airline currently operates daily flights from London to Bombay and Delhi and twice a week to Madras.

Bombay-London-Bombay:

BA 138 departs Bombay at 0230 hours, daily, and arrives into London at 0750 hours.
On the return journey, BA 139 departs London at 1040 hours, daily, and arrives into Bombay at 0020 hours.

Delhi-London-Delhi:

BA 144 departs New Delhi at 0005 hours on Mondays, Tuesdays, Thursdays, Fridays and Saturdays and arrives into London at 0455 hours.
BA 142 departs New Delhi at 0005 hours on Wednesdays and Sundays and arrives into London at 0455 hours.
On the return journey, BA 143 departs from London at 2155 hours on Mondays and Fridays and arrives into New Delhi at 1105 hours.
BA 144 departs London at 2155 hours on Tuesdays, Wednesdays, Thursdays, Saturdays and Sundays and arrives into New Delhi at 1105 hours.

Madras-London-Madras

BA 036 departs Madras at 0800 hours on Wednesdays and Sundays and arrives into London at 1430 hours.
On the return journey, BA 035 departs London at 1435 hours on Tuesdays and Saturdays and arrives into Bombay at 0500 hours.

To Madras. From Dubai

Emirates Airlines will introduce a new flight between Dubai and Madras from September.

EK 540 will depart Dubai at 0230 hours on Mondays and Fridays and arrive into Madras at 0800 hours.
EK 542 will depart Dubai at 2130 hours on Wednesdays and Saturdays and arrive into Madras at 0300 hours.
On the return journey EK 541 will depart Madras at 0930 hours on Mondays and Fridays and arrive into Dubai at 1200 hours.
EK 543 will depart Madras at 0415 hours on Sundays and Thursdays and arrive into Dubai at 0645 hours.

The airline currently has regular flights from Bombay to Dubai and from New Delhi to Dubai.

Bombay-Dubai-Bombay

EK 501 departs Bombay at 0430 hours daily and arrives into Dubai at 0600 hours.
EK 503 departs Bombay at 1900 hours daily and arrives into Dubai at 2030 hours.
EK 505 departs Bombay at 0945 hours on Mondays, Tuesdays, Thursdays, Saturdays and Sundays and arrives into Dubai at 1115 hours.
On Fridays, EK 505 departs Bombay at 1330 hours and arrives into Dubai at 1500 hours.
On the return journey EK 500 departs Dubai at 2230 hours daily and arrives into Bombay at 0245 hours the following morning.
EK 502 departs Dubai at 1330 hours daily and arrives into Bombay at 1745 hours.
EK 504 departs Dubai at 0400 hours on Mondays, Tuesdays, Thursdays, Saturdays and Sundays and arrives into Bombay at 0815 hours.
On Fridays, EK 504 departs Dubai at 0800 hours and arrives into Bombay at 1215 hours.

New Delhi-Dubai-New Delhi

EK 701 departs New Delhi at 1000 hours on Tuesdays, Thursdays and Saturdays and arrives into Dubai at 1145 hours.
EK 703 departs New Delhi at 0430 hours on Mondays, Wednesdays, Fridays and Sundays and arrives into Dubai at 0615 hours.
On the return journey EK 700 departs Dubai at 0410 hours on Tuesdays, Thursdays and Saturdays and arrives into New Delhi at 0845 hours.
EK 702 departs Dubai at 2240 hours on Tuesdays, Thursdays, Saturdays and Sundays and arrives into New Delhi at 0315 hours.

Daily to Zurich

Swiss Air has increased the frequency of its flights to Bombay and Delhi. The airline will now fly daily between Zurich and Bombay and New Delhi .

Bombay-Zurich-Bombay

SR 193 will depart from Bombay at 0115 hours daily, except Sundays, and arrive into Zurich at 0625 hours. On Sundays, it will depart from Bombay at 0115 hours and arrive into Zurich 0615 hours.

On the return journey, SR 192 will depart Zurich at 1210 hours daily, except on Thursdays, and arrive into Bombay at 2355 hours. On Thursdays, it will depart Zurich at 1205 hours and arrive into Bombay at 2355 hours.

Delhi-Zurich-Delhi

SR 195 will depart from New Delhi at 0125 hours daily, except on Sundays, and arrive into Zurich at 0615 hours. On Sundays, it will depart from New Delhi at 0205 hours and arrive at Zurich at 0700 hours.
On the return journey, SR 194 will depart from Zurich at 1210 hours daily, except on weekends, and arrive into New Delhi at 2320 hours. On Saturdays and Sundays, it will depart from Zurich at 1205 hours and arrive into Bombay at 2320 hours.

The regular one way economy class fare is Rs 52,300 and the one way business class fare is Rs 93,755.

London for less

British Airways and The Economic Times are offering special discounted fares to their customers in India travelling to London.

Readers of the Economic Times are required to complete coupons attached to the daily advertisements in the paper, and mail them to British Airways in return for the discount vouchers which can be redeemed for the discount quoted on the coupon.

The discount vouchers will be provided on a first-come-first-served basis for each discount level advertised.

The discounts are on offer for travel from July 1 to August 15 and from September 16 to October 31.

Virgin Airways starts London-New Delhi flight

Virgin Atlantic Airways has started its services to/from India from July 5, 2000.

The airline will fly twice a week between London and New Delhi. The third service between the two cities will be introduced in October.

VS 300 will depart London Heathrow at 2230 hours on Wednesdays and Fridays and arrive into New Delhi at 1125 hours the next day.
On the return journey VS 304 will depart New Delhi at 1445 hours on Thursdays and Saturdays and arrive into London at 1910 hours.

Discounts of six to seven per cent on these fares are available at your local travel agent.

Its GSA in India:
Stic Travels, Maker Arcade, Cuffe Parade, Colaba, Bombay. Phones: 022-2181440, 2181431.
New Delhi. Phones: 011-3311469, 3311470, 3320329, 3320285.

Sparkling Mauritius

Air Mauritius will introduce a new weekly flight between Mauritius and Madras from October. The new weekly direct service to Madras will be introduced on October 29, 2000.

MK 747 will depart Madras at 0415 hours on Tuesdays and arrive into Mauritius at 0830 hours.
On the return journey MK 746 will depart Mauritius at 1915 hours on Mondays and arrive into Madras at 0240 hours the following morning.

The airline currently flies thrice a week from Bombay to Mauritius and once a week from Delhi to Mauritius.

Bombay-Mauritius-Bombay

MK 715 departs Bombay at 0355 hours on Fridays and arrives into Mauritius at 0825 hours.
MK 749 departs Bombay at 0705 hours on Wednesdays and arrives into Mauritius at 1135 hours.
MK 755 departs Bombay at 0540 hours on Thursdays and arrives into Mauritius at 1010 hours.
On the return journey MK 750 departs Mauritius at 1815 hours on Thursdays and arrives into Bombay at 0155 hours.
MK 754 departs Mauritius at 2000 hours on Wednesdays and arrives into Bombay at 0340 hours.
MK 748 departs Mauritius at 2140 hours on Tuesdays and arrives into Bombay at 0520 hours.

New Delhi-Mauritius-New Delhi

MK 745 departs New Delhi at 2345 hours on Wednesdays and arrives into Mauritius at 0530 hours.
On the return journey MK 744 departs Mauritius at 1310 hours on Wednesdays and arrives into New Delhi at 2210 hours.

PTI

To Vienna, gateway to the Austrian Alps

Austrian Airlines has introduced an additional flight between New Delhi and Vienna.

Austrain Airlines now flies four times a week from New Delhi to Vienna.

OS 542 departs from New Delhi at 0145 hours on Mondays, Tuesdays, Wednesdays and Sundays and arrives in Vienna at 0605 hours.
In the return journey, OS 541 departs from Vienna at 1325 hours on Mondays, Tuesdays, Saturdays, and Sundays and arrives in New Delhi at 0010 hours the following day.

The economy class return fare between New Delhi and Vienna is Rs 52,660. The business class return fare is Rs 81,530.

UNI

Flying to Frankfurt?

Lufthansa Airlines has introduced an additional flight between Bombay and Frankfurt till October 2000.

Lufthansa now flies five times a week from Bombay to Frankfurt.
LH 757 departs from Bombay at 0240 hours on Mondays, Tuesdays, Thursdays, Fridays and Sundays and arrive in Frankfurt at 0750 hours.
In the return journey, LH 756 departs from Frankfurt at 1320 hours on Mondays, Wednesdays, Thursdays, Saturdays and Sundays and arrive in Bombay at 0050 hours the following day.
Lufthansa flies daily to Frankfurt from New Delhi.
LH 761 departs from New Delhi at 0225 hours, daily, and arrives in Frankfurt at 0705 hours.
On the return journey, LH 760 departs from Frankfurt at 1340 hours, daily, and arrives in New Delhi at 0035 hours the following day.
Lufthansa flies thrice a week to Frankfurt from Madras.
LH 759 departs from Madras at 0120 hours on Mondays, Thursdays and Saturdays and arrives in Frankfurt at 0740 hours.
On the return journey, LH 758 departs from Frankfurt at 1035 hours on Wednesdays, Fridays and Sundays and arrives in Madras at 2310 hours.

Free holidays from AI

Air-India has introduced a special scheme for its corporate and business travellers flying to New York, Chicago, London, Paris, Singapore, Tokyo and Osaka.

Under the scheme, the airline is offering free holiday packages for two, to destinations in India or/and abroad, depending on the number of tickets purchased. This offer is for first class and executive class passengers only. The package includes air tickets, airport transfers and breakfast. Additional attractions include a free holiday at the French Riviera, Carribean Cruises and African Safari.

The scheme is applicable effective April 1, 2000. For more details click here.

Passengers who do not wish to avail of the above offer, can opt for a discounted ticket for a companion. The airline has extended its companion offer, for New York, London, Chicago, Paris, Tokyo, Osaka, Singapore, Jakarta, Kuala Lumpur and Hong Kong to Dubai and Abu Dhabi.

Special student fares from AI

Air-India and American Airlines offer special one way fares for students travelling to the US. The fares are all ex-Bombay and are valid upto March 31, 2001.

Rs 27,300 for Bombay to:

NYC = New York.
CHI = Chicago.

Rs 27,300, via New York on American Airlines, for Bombay to:

BWI = Baltimore.
BOS = Boston.
PHL = Philadelphia.
PIT = Pitsburgh.
WAS = Washington.

Rs 29,000, via Chicago on American Airlines, for Bombay to:

BNA = Nashville, TN, USA
CID = Cedar Rapids, lowa
CLE = Cleveland, Ohio
CMH = Columbus, Ohio
CVG = Cincinnati, Ohio
DAY = Dayton, Ohio
DTW = Detroit, Michigan
DSM = Des Moines, Idaho
IND = Indianapolis, Indiana
NKC = Kansas City
NKE = Milwaukee
MSP = Minneapolis
ROC = Rochestor
STL = St Louis
TUL = Tulsa

Rs 30,700, via Chicago on American Airlines, for Bombay to:

HOU = Houston
DFW = Dallas
LAX = Los Angeles
SFO = San Francisco
SAN = San Diego
SEA = Seattle
SJC = San Jose

Sky Track Tours and Travels, 368 Veer Savarkar, Prabhadevi, Bombay. Phones: 022-4370106, 4362007, and 4370107. Email: Skytrack.
Business and Pleasure Travel & Tours, Unique House Mezanine, 72/74 Nagdevi Street, Bombay. Phones: 022-3433952, 3433953. Email: Business and Pleasure.

Click here to check out these zonal fares.

Sky Track Tours and Travels, 368 Veer Savarkar, Prabhadevi, Bombay. Phones: 022-4370106, 4362007, and 4370107. Email: Skytrack.

--> A new office

Cathay Pacific has shifted its office in Bombay. Its new office is located on the 3rd floor of Bajaj Bhavan in Nariman Point. Its telephone numbers have not changed. Reservations and ticketing: 022-2029112. Sales: 022-2020257. Enquiries: 022-2029561. Fax: 022-2865830, 2865840.

Dubai to Sydney...no problem!

Emirates will commence a new service between Dubai and Sydney from March 26, 2000. The airline will fly four times a week between Dubai and Sydney, via Singapore.

The airline already operates a daily flight between Dubai and Melbourne.

The flight will depart from Dubai at 0750 hours on Tuesdays, Thursdays, Saturdays and Sundays and arrive in Singapore at 1925 hours. The flight will depart Singapore at 2035 hours and arrive in Sydney at 0605 hours, the following day.
From August 27, 2000, the flights will arrive Sydney one hour later. All other timings will remain the same.
On the return journey the flight will depart Sydney at 2015 hours on Monday, Wednesday, Friday and Sunday and arrive in Singapore at 0230 hours, the following day. The flight will depart Singapore at 0340 hours and arrive in Dubai at 0645 hours.

The airbus, a 330-200 aircraft, will have 18 seats in first class, 42 in business and 183 in economy. The aircraft can also carry 13 tonnes of cargo in addition to a full passenger load.

A new terminal in Bombay

The new terminal at the Chhatrapati Shivaji International Airport in Bombay has commenced operations in a phased manner with the first Air-India flight taking off on September 23.

Spread across 70,865 sq meters, Terminal II C has 41 check-in counters, 32 immigration counters-16 each for departure and arrival-and a visitors concourse opposite the immigration counters at the departure level.

For its first class and executive class passengers, Air-India has a Maharaja Lounge on the first floor which houses a business centre, a bar, a library and a music room. The Transit Lounge on the mezzannine floor has a business centre and a gymnasium for transit passengers. The new terminal also has a lounge for unaccompanied minors.

All departures and arrivals will gradually move to the new terminal if no operational difficulties are experienced.

Book SQ tickets online

Singapore Airlines has introduced Internet booking, using which the passengers can book their travel round the clock on all seven days a week.

Passengers travelling between Singapore and Hong Kong, Kuala Lumpur, London, Manchester and Penang on Singapore Airlines, can now book seats and pay for their tickets via the Internet through ''SQ-etravel''

The service is presently available for economy class travel, but will be extended to all classes by September 1999 and more routes will be added by the end of the year.

''SQ-etravel'' facilitates passengers to check flight availability, select the flight of their choice, order a special meal, pay on-line by entering their credit card details and print a receipt-- all at a click of a mouse.
Upon arrival at the airport, customers can collect their boarding pass by producing the credit card used to make the booking as verification.

Planning is already under way to enhance the system to allow first and business class customers to view a real-time seat map and select their preferred seat. Later, the system will be used to record frequent flyers' personal travel preferences.

UNI

Holy Land calling

El Al, the Israeli airline, now offers three connections a week from Bombay to Tel Aviv. There are still two flights in the return direction from Tel Aviv to Bombay.

LY 76 departs from Bombay on Mondays and Fridays at 0215 hours IST and reaches Tel Aviv at 0720 hours local time.
LY 86 departs from Bombay on Thursdays at 0110 hours IST and reaches Tel Aviv at 0615 hours local time.
LY 81 departs from Tel Aviv on Thursdays at 1900 hours local time and reaches Bombay at 0515 hours IST.
LY 83 departs from Tel Aviv on Sundays at 2240 hours local time and reaches Bombay at 0855 hours IST.

The return economy class excursion fare valid for four months is Rs 32,295. The return first class fare is Rs 93,140.

The return business class fare valid for one year is priced at Rs 45,020 in the lower class and Rs 78,230 in the upper class. El Al offers two types of pricing for its business class seats. The facilities available to both types of business class passengers is identical but those passengers with cheaper business class tickets do not get a priority if waitlisted.

Discounts of six to seven per cent on these fares are available at your local travel agent.

El Al Airlines, first floor, World Trade Centre, Cuffe Parade. Phone: 022-2154701.

More information on international flights