SpiceJet announces daily flight on Delhi-Pakyong route

Mumbai: Budget carrier SpiceJet, which was the first domestic operator to land a commercial flight at Sikkim’s Pakyong airport from Kolkata in early October of 2018, has now announced to connect the aerodrome from Delhi with a non-stop daily service, starting January 23.

The air services on the new route, to be operated by a Bombardier 400 aircraft, will be offered under the government’s regional connectivity scheme UDAN, SpiceJet said.

Besides, the airline said it will also add a second frequency on the Delhi-Leh-Delhi sector from January 27 onwards.

The Pakyong airport is the only operational civil airport handling commercial flight operations in Sikkim, and SpiceJet will be the first and only airline to offer daily direct air connectivity between Delhi and the northeastern state, it said.

“We are delighted to launch new flights connecting Pakyong and Leh to the national capital. Sikkim is one of the most beautiful and sought-after travel destinations in India,” said SpiceJet Chairman and Managing Director Ajay Singh.

He added that the flights from Delhi to Pakyong (Gangtok) will cater to the growing demand of leisure travellers and backpackers who want to visit this beautiful city in the foothills of Himalayas.

With the launch of these new flights, SpiceJet aims to make journeys shorter, he added.

SpiceJet was awarded Pakyong along with Delhi under the second phase of the UDAN (Ude Desh ka Aam Nagrik) scheme.

With new flight services, passengers from Pakyong and Leh can travel to a host of other cities both on SpiceJet’s domestic as well as international network via multiple onward connections from Delhi, the airline said.

SpiceJet commenced services to Pakyong Airport on October 5, 2018, nearly two weeks after Prime Minister Narendra Modi inaugurated it, with a direct flight from Kolkata under UDAN.

The airline, however, temporarily discontinued the services from June 2019 till further notice, reportedly owing to unpredictable weather in Pakyong. Low visibility was impacting the flight operations there.