New Delhi: Residents and tourists aspiring to visit Shimla, Kullu and Dharamshala will soon have an option to travel through air. After a long wait, Alliance Air, a wholly owned subsidiary of Air India Assets Holding Limited (AIAHL), has announced to flight operations between Shimla, Kullu and Dharamshala from December 9.
The Alliance Air, a government of India company, has decided to aircraft facility on this sector under the Union ministry of civil aviation’s Udaan scheme, which envisaged facilitating air travel between tier 2 cities. As per the fair announced by the company, one way ticket is likely to cost ₹5138. The Alliance Air will operate flights on Shimla-Dharamshala route thrice a week and four times a week on the Shimla-Kullu route, said a company statement.
In its bid to expand flight operations among tier-2 cities, the company has acquired a fleet of ATR 42 600 planes, which has a passenger capacity of 42. The flights will reduce travel time between the Shimla and the two districts by approximately 6 hours.
A senior officer of the Alliance Air said that flights between Shimla and Dharamshala will operate on Monday, Friday and Saturday and the rest of the days, services will be available on the Shimla-Kullu route. While the flight from Shimla will depart at 7.40 am and land at Dharamshala by 8.30 am, the returning flight will depart at 8.50 am. Flights between Shimla and Kullu will operate at the same time.
Also Read: Alliance Air launches direct flight between Indore & Bilaspur
The ministries of tourism and civil aviation had sought permission from the Election Commission of India to launch flights from September. However, since the model code of conduct is in place till December 8, the launch of the flights was postponed.
Alliance Air has a company target of connecting metros to virgin territories to increase its network and develop tourism to Tier-2 and Tier-3 cities. Following the disinvestment of Air India (AI), Alliance Air was formed as a special purpose vehicle (SPV) under AI holdings. After AI was acquired by Tata Sons, Alliance ceased to be part of AI holdings.
Also Read: Alliance Air resumes Delhi-Shimla flight after two-years gap
While the Union ministry hopes that the new routes will attract more tourists ahead of Christmas and New Year, hoteliers are hopeful that with the new connectivity, tourist footfall will reach the pre-Covid numbers. However, locals appeared to be unfazed about the government’s decision to connect these cities with air, as they are largely dependant on bus services.
