SpiceJet ferries 176 Indian students to Georgia on charter flight

The airline will operate another charter flight to Georgia from Kochi tomorrow for 174 Indian students

Low cost carrier SpiceJet on Saturday said it  has operated a charter flight from Chennai to Tbilisi in Georgia carrying 176 students.

The airline said it will operate another charter flight to Georgia from Kochi tomorrow for 174 Indian students.

“SpiceJet is proud to operate its maiden charter flight to Georgia carrying Indian students. It gives us immense joy to help students in any manner possible and this is another example of our commitment to stand beside our fellow citizens during these tough times. We will continue our efforts in helping more Indians and foreign nationals in the days to come,” said Debashish Saha, Vice President, Regulatory and Government Affairs, at SpiceJet.

The airline’s flight from Chennai departed at 04:10 am IST and will reach Tbilisi at 11:55 am (local time). The airline’s second charter flight is scheduled to depart from Kochi at 3:45 am IST tomorrow and reach Georgia at 11:55 am (local time) the same day.

The airline had earlier operated long-haul charter flights from Amsterdam to Bengaluru and Hyderabad and from Delhi to Toronto.

Scheduled international passenger flights continue to remain suspended in India since March 23 due to the coronavirus pandemic.

However, the Indian government has established separate bilateral air bubbles with countries like the USA, Germany and France. Under a bilateral bubble, airlines of both the countries can operate international flights with certain restrictions. In such conditions, charter flights are helping airlines earn cash amid uncertain travel demand and rising fuel costs.