By IANS
Surat : National carrier Indian has put the diamond city of Surat in Gujarat on the air map of India with the introduction of a daily direct flight from Delhi to Surat from Sunday.
Surat has thus become the 54th domestic destination on Indian's network and the fourth city in Gujarat after Ahmedabad, Vadodara and Jamnagar.
Civil Aviation Praful Patel Minister flagged off the inaugural flight from Surat to Delhi at 12.40 p.m. in the presence of Chairman and Managing Director of Indian Vishwapati Trivedi and K. Ramalingam, chairman, Airports Authority of India.
The flight IC 417/418 will be operated with the 122-seater Airbus A-319 with a twin configuration of eight executive class and 114 economy class seats. While IC 417 from Delhi to Surat will depart Delhi at 1030 hours and reach Surat at 1200 noon, the return flight IC 418 will leave Surat at 1240 hours and arrive in Delhi at 1410 hours, according to a press release.
Surat airport has been upgraded to meet the requirements of a growing aviation industry with increased traffic demands.