New travel option for Ghaziabad, Noida: Air India Express to connect Kolkata with Hindon; check details

Air India Express, a subsidiary of Tata Group-owned Air India, will launch flights between Kolkata and Hindon Airport in Ghaziabad, Uttar Pradesh, starting March 1, an airline spokesperson said on Tuesday.

The Kolkata-Hindon route will operate daily, while flights from Hindon to Kolkata will run six days a week, excluding Saturdays. The flights will depart Kolkata at 7:10 am and arrive at Hindon at 9:30 am, while the return leg will leave Hindon at 5:20 pm and reach Kolkata at 7:40 pm.

Air India Express will be the first airline to operate a jet-engine aircraft from Hindon Airport, the spokesperson added.

Currently, only smaller aircraft operate on short-haul routes from the facility.

With this expansion, the low-cost carrier will now serve two airports in the National Capital Region (NCR) — Indira Gandhi International Airport in Delhi and Hindon Airport in Ghaziabad.

The new route is expected to provide a convenient alternative for travellers from eastern and central Delhi, Noida, and surrounding areas, including Connaught Place, Karol Bagh, Vaishali, and Indirapuram.

Air India Express initially planned to commence operations on this route in August 2024, but the launch was postponed.

The airline currently connects Kolkata to 14 destinations, including Bagdogra, Bengaluru, Bhubaneswar, Chennai, Guwahati, and Hyderabad. The carrier is also looking to introduce services from Hindon to Bengaluru and Goa, with six daily flights from each location.

Hindon Airport is expected to enhance regional connectivity, making air travel more accessible to travellers from western Uttar Pradesh and Uttarakhand, including cities such as Dehradun, Haridwar, Meerut, Moradabad, and Saharanpur, the airline said in a statement.

Air India Express is also planning international flights from Kolkata to Kathmandu and Dhaka as part of its summer schedule this year, reported PTI citing people aware of the development.

Hindon Airport’s air traffic control is managed by the Indian Air Force, while the civil enclave has been developed and operated by the Airports Authority of India (AAI). The facility also handles VIP and non-scheduled flights.