Jet Airways to suspend Rajkot ops from April 1

RAJKOT: Bad news for Rajkot flyers. Jet airways announce suspending its flight operations from the city from April 1 onwards. For the time it is curtailing its flight from the city from March 20. Rajkot airport authority received a letter from the airlines stating that from March 20 to 30 it will operate its evening flight on alternate days only.

Jet airways currently operates two flights from Rajkot to Mumbai at 9:30 in the morning and 9:15 in the evening. Airport director B K Das told TOI that they received a letter from Jet airways stating that from March 20 to 30 the airlines will operate evening flight on alternate days only and have withdrawn the daily evening flight.

Even travel agents in the city have received instructions to cancel tickets from April onwards. According to them, this will be a major setback for Rajkot that two flights have been withdrawn during vacation time. Chief Executive of Trans Globe Travels, Sanjay Mehta said, “We have received oral message from the airlines to cancel booked tickets from April 1 onwards till further instruction. They have also communicated to travel operators to ask our clients to make alternative arrangements for their planned travel from April onwards.”

At present four flights were operating from the city, but after April there will only two Air India flights connecting the city — one to Mumbai and other Delhi. “The DGCA and airport authority should intervene in this case because in April many people have booked tickets, connecting domestic or international flights from Mumbai as it is a vacation period,” Mehta said.

According to sources the airport authority and the Rajkot Chamber of Commerce and Industry is trying to convince Spice Jet and Indigo to start operations from Rajkot assuring them of getting good business from the city.