Kochi-London direct flights thrice a week from today, Air India to operate it.

Air India is set to operate direct flights from Kerala's Cochin International Airport to the United Kingdom's capital of London thrice a week, starting from Sunday, August 22. This comes as a first for the airport as well as for the state, where the Kochi airport is now the only one to operate direct flights to London.

The UK moved India from its red list to the amber list of countries earlier this month, and soon after, Air India on August 18 launched direct flights from the Heathrow airport in London to the Kochi airport. Considering the positive response from the expat community, the Kochi airport has now announced that the London-Kochi-London air services are being extended to thrice a week -- on Wednesdays, Fridays, and Saturdays.

According to a statement issued by Cochin International Airport Limited (CIAL), the three direct flights from London being hosted per week "is the highest



number of flight services that have been scheduled in this sector in the history of CIAL."

Air India is deploying a Dreamliner category of aircraft to operate the three direct Kochi-London flights, as per reports quoting a statement issued by CIAL managing director S Suhas. The flights are part of an ongoing effort by the Kochi airport and the Kerala government to establish frequent air connectivity to Europe, Suhas said, adding that the airport will also be waiving off parking and landing fees to attract more European carriers.

The Kochi-London direct flight from Air India will take 10 hours, according to the statement issued by the Kochi airport. On Wednesdays and Fridays, the arrival and departure operations are scheduled at 3:45 and 1:20pm. The move is expected to further extend a hand to the thousands of stranded expats in the UK, who can now return to the country with a bit more ease.