In a recent development, Spicejet has become the first and only private homegrown carrier after the grounding of Jet Airways to operate flights to the US. SpiceJet on Thursday announced that it has been designated as a scheduled carrier to operate flights on agreed routes between India and the United States.
Previously, only the national carrier Air India had the permission to operate flights in India-US routes.
This comes after Civil Aviation Minister Hardeep Singh Puri announced last week that international flights can resume through bilateral air bubbles between countries till the situation returns to normalcy.
“This is to inform you that in terms of the Air Services Agreement between the Government of India and the Government of the United States of America, SpiceJet has been designated as Indian scheduled carrier to operate on agreed services between India and the USA,” the Spicejet said in an official statement.
“It gives me immense pleasure to share that SpiceJet has been designated as an Indian scheduled carrier to operate between India and the US. This designation would help us plan for our international expansion in a much better and calibrated manner. I have always maintained that there is an opportunity in every adversity and the present crisis situation has seen SpiceJet rise to the occasion and play a pivotal role.”
~ Ajay Singh, Chairman & Managing Director, SpiceJet
Mr Singh further said, “From operating over 4300 cargo flights to carrying over 24,000 tons of cargo to operating over 400 charter flights to bring back thousands of stranded Indian nationals back home, SpiceJet has worked non-stop and contributed in whatever manner possible.”
At the onset of the pandemic, SpiceJet was the first Indian airline to operate a cargo-on-seat flight carrying 11 tons of vital supplies in the passenger cabin and belly space in a Boeing737 aircraft.
Earlier in May, SpiceJet had also announced that its freighter arm SpiceXpress has received DGCA approval for conducting drone trials. The airlines will utilise drones in delivery of essential supplies to remote areas, after the necessary trials and approvals.
