India’s no-frills carrier SpiceJet has started the new year by resuming some more international routes. Since January 7th and 8th, the airline has begun connecting Sharjah with three Indian cities. While some airlines are scaling back domestic operations in India amid the COVID surge, SpiceJet is reportedly witnessing good demand for these latest flights to the Middle East.
Since last week, SpiceJet has started flying to Sharjah from Pune, Mangaluru, and Madurai. The carrier began its Pune-Sharjah operations on January 7th and will fly on this sector thrice weekly, according to the airline’s website. Flight SG 788 will operate on Wednesday, Friday, and Saturday, departing Pune at 9:50 pm and arriving in Sharjah at 11:55 pm.
SpiceJet’s Pune to Sharjah flight on Friday marked the city’s first international departure after a gap of 21 months. The Boeing 737 arrived from New Delhi and departed for Sharjah at 11:53 pm after a delay. The service to Sharjah is Pune’s first international flight after COVID-19 restrictions and will operate under an Air Bubble arrangement.
SpiceJet’s Sharjah flight could be the first of more international flights out of Pune in the coming months. The airport administration has been trying to get approval for more flights since December 2020. Before the COVID lockdown, Pune had two international flights to Dubai by SpiceJet and Air India Express.
Of course, all COVID protocols remain in place for international passengers, including submitting a negative RT-PCR test report and a self-declaration form on the online Air Suvidha portal.
Pune Airport has been prepping itself for more flights post-COVID. In October last year, it was closed for two weeks to complete resurfacing work. While the closure caused inconvenience to both airlines and passengers, the runway was finally made ready for a new stint.
Hopefully, SpiceJet’s Sharjah flight is the first of many more to come from Pune.