The inaugural flight, AI1111, departed from Varanasi’s Lal Bahadur Shastri International Airport at 9:23 am. Passengers on board will connect through Delhi to several international destinations, including Dubai, Colombo, Jeddah, Riyadh, Kathmandu and Phuket.
The service was inaugurated by Union Civil Aviation Minister Kinjarapu Ram Mohan Naidu, who said the new model would allow people to begin their international journeys directly from their home cities.
“Today we take a major step forward towards realising our vision of making air travel more accessible and building a future-ready, self-reliant Indian aviation industry that is efficient, inclusive, and globally competitive,” Naidu said.
Under the Easy Connect model, passengers flying from smaller cities can connect through Air India’s hubs in Delhi, Mumbai and Bengaluru and continue to international destinations with fewer airport procedures.
The airline said passengers can check in for their entire journey at their departure airport, complete immigration there, and have their baggage transferred directly to their final destination.
Air India has opened bookings for Easy Connect flights through its website, mobile app, contact centre and travel agents.
The airline said passengers flying from Varanasi can now connect to 17 international destinations through Delhi within four hours of arrival, including London, Rome, Milan, Frankfurt, Zurich, Dubai, Riyadh and Jeddah.
Air India said Indian passport holders using the service must enroll in the DigiYatra app and upload their boarding passes before departure. Web check-in and customs declaration facilities are not available at spoke airports.
Speaking at the launch, Air India CEO and Managing Director Campbell Wilson said many Indian travellers currently rely on foreign airports for international connections. He said the new service would allow passengers to start their international travel from their hometowns with greater ease.
“In today’s India, a family in Varanasi, Amritsar, or Vishakhapatnam should not have to navigate unfamiliar transit environments to reach the world. They should be able to begin their international journey from their home city, on their own soil, feeling confident, comfortable, and proud as they connect seamlessly to global destinations,” Wilson added.
The airline said it will gradually expand the Easy Connect service to 11 more cities over the coming months, including Ahmedabad, Amritsar, Chennai, Goa, Guwahati, Hyderabad, Kochi, Mumbai, Patna, Vadodara and Visakhapatnam.
According to Air India, nearly 25 million passengers travel on long-haul routes to and from India every year. Of these, around 20 million are connecting travellers, with about 17 million currently transiting through overseas hubs instead of Indian airports.
