Bhubaneswar: Air India Express will commence flight operations on four new routes, connecting Bhubaneswar with Jaipur, Lucknow, Kochi and Patna, from next year.
The service to Jaipur and Kochi will commence on January 3, 2025, followed by the launch of flights to Lucknow on January 4 and Patna on January 15, the airline, a subsidiary of Air India, said in a statement on Tuesday.
The Bhubaneswar-Jaipur flight will be available four days a week – Mondays, Wednesdays, Fridays and Sundays, while the Bhubaneswar-Kochi and Bhubaneswar-Patna flights will operate daily.
The direct flight to Lucknow will d
epart from Bhubaneswar at 7.55 am and land there at 9.40 am on Tuesdays, Thursdays and Saturdays.
Bookings are now open.
The expansion marks Air India Express’s strategic push to enhance connectivity from Bhubaneswar.
Similarly, IndiGo will start flights to Indore and Dehradun four days and thrice a week respectively from January 1. The flights for Indore and Dehradun are expected to depart from Biju Patnaik International Airport at 3 pm.
Apart from the new flight operations, plans are afoot for launch of early morning flight services to Bengaluru due to high demand. An IndiGo flight is expected to arrive at Bhubaneswar by 12.20 am and leave for Bengaluru by 6.15 am from January 4.