Jet Airways will start using Abu Dhabi as its gateway for international operations starting January 15.
India’s second largest passenger carrier, which recently concluded the process of selling a 24 per cent stake to Etihad Airways, has started two new flights to Dammam in Saudi Arabia from Kochi and Chennai.
The new flights are part of the two airliners’ blueprint of connecting 23 cities in India to Abu Dhabi.
The Chennai-Damman flight will be operated via Abu Dhabi to Dammam, while the Kochi-Dammam route will be serviced by a direct flight, according to a press statement. The airline will deploy a Boeing 737-800 aircraft on these two new services, offering economy and business classes.
With this, Jet will be able to offer six non-stop flights to Saudi Arabia, with more one-stop options.
The airline has been in the process of revamping its network in order to focus more on operational routes. In September, Jet announced that it will withdraw its services to Bhubaneswar. Last month, it scrapped the Chennai-Colombo route, with which Jet had originally ventured overseas.
adith.charli@thehindu.co.in