Introduced as ‘Easy Connect’ flights, these services enable travellers from cities beyond major hubs to drop baggage and complete immigration at the origin airport and travel seamlessly to destinations across the world, Air India said in a statement.
Under the hub-and-spoke model, ‘spoke’ cities such as Varanasi are connected to major ‘hub’ airports like Delhi, from where passengers can seamlessly access Air India’s extensive global network.
This coordinated structure allows passengers from non-metro cities to connect efficiently to multiple international destinations through a single hub, with optimised schedules and a smooth transit experience, Air India said.
The airline said it will drive a phased rollout of Easy Connect flights across multiple cities in the months ahead to operationalise seamless international connectivity from India’s Tier 2 and Tier 3 cities at scale.
The facility provides for a through check-in to final destination as travellers from Tier 2 and Tier 3 cities, such as Varanasi, can check in at their home airport all the way through to their final international destinations, with no need to collect or re-check baggage at the hub airport, such as Delhi.
Also, travellers will complete international immigration formalities at their originating airport, avoiding queues and processing at the hub.Besides, passengers availing these flights will transit through hub airports like Delhi as international travellers, making connections faster and more efficient, Air India said.
The designated Easy Connect flight from Varanasi to Delhi will operate daily as AI1111. Within four hours of arrival at Delhi, the flight is timed to provide seamless connections to 17 international destinations, including London Heathrow, Frankfurt, Milan, Rome, Zurich, Manila, Singapore, Phuket, Kuala Lumpur, Riyadh, and Dubai, among others, the airline said.
Subsequent Easy Connect flights with hub-and-spoke operations from other ‘spoke’ airports will be numbered in the ‘AI11XX’ series, creating a distinct network identity for these services.
“The successful implementation of the hub-and-spoke model requires close coordination across airlines, airports, and multiple government agencies, and we are grateful for the strong collaboration that has enabled this rollout. Air India is committed to continuing to work closely with all stakeholders across the industry and the Government of India as we expand this model to more cities and phases.
“Together, we are building a more efficient, integrated, and globally competitive aviation ecosystem for India,” said P Balaji, Group Head – Governance, Risk, Compliance & Corporate Affairs, Air India.
The rollout will expand to several additional cities in a phased manner over the coming months, as Air India continues to anchor and lead the implementation of this next-generation connectivity model, the airline said.