Virgin Atlantic will launch a three times a week passenger service to Delhi from Manchester in October this year.
The new North of England route, using Airbus A330-200 aircraft, will see Virgin Atlantic Cargo tap into the £20bn of annual trade between the UK and India.
UK-India trade currently generates 100,000 tonnes of imports and exports moving by air each year – including high volumes of vegetables, fresh fruit, spices and apparel. This expansion comes as the airline celebrates the 20th anniversary of flying to India.
Last October, Virgin Atlantic started daily Heathrow-Mumbai services and, on March 29, will introduce double daily flights to Delhi from Heathrow.
The launch of direct flights to India from Manchester will give exporters and importers more choice, said a report.
Source : Our Correspondent