UAE-India flights: Etihad Airways restarts daily service to Kolkata

Eastern Indian metropolis becomes airline’s 8th destination in India

A Staff Reporter

Published: Mon 27 Mar 2023, 12:29 PM

Last updated: Mon 27 Mar 2023, 12:34 PM

Etihad Airways touched down once again in Kolkata on Sunday as the airline made its much-anticipated return to the city. With a total of seven weekly nonstop services, the airline will once again connect the eastern Indian metropolis with the world through Abu Dhabi.

The first flight on the new service, EY256, departed Abu Dhabi with a full load of passengers at 1:50pm local time on Sunday and touched down at Kolkata’s Netaji Subhash Chandra Bose Airport at 8:10pm local time.

Upon arrival in Kolkata, passengers were welcomed with a cake cutting ceremony and a celebration attended by Etihad and Kolkata Airport Executives.

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The return flight, EY257, departed Kolkata at 9:05pm local time on 26 March, landing in Abu Dhabi shortly after midnight.

Passenger onboard Etihad flight EY256, before departing Abu Dhabi International Airport to Kolkata’s Netaji Subhash Chandra Bose Airport. - Supplied photo

Arik De, chief revenue officer, Etihad Airways, said: “Riding on the resurgence of outbound travel from India, we’re delighted to resume daily flights to Kolkata, a key cultural and commercial hub in the Indian subcontinent. Re-establishing this vital air link with East India will support the growing demand from travellers in and around the region, offering them easy access to Abu Dhabi and connectivity to our global network alongside a world-class flying experience. We have been very impressed with our initial demand, which reaffirms our strategy to return to this key market.”

The flights will be operated with an Airbus A320 aircraft, offering Etihad’s award-winning service to guests in 8 seats in Business Class and 150 in Economy, convenient flight timings to the UAE’s capital city and seamless connections to destinations across the airline’s growing global network of 67 destinations.

Etihad passengers flying from Kolkata to the United States can benefit from the US Customs and Border Protection (CBP) facility in Abu Dhabi International Airport, the only US immigration pre-clearance service in the region that allows passengers to clear US immigration while they are still in Abu Dhabi, meaning travellers can get home quicker and easier.

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