New Delhi [India], September 1 (ANI): Air India Express launched direct flights from Ahmedabad and Chandigarh, connecting directly to Bengaluru, on Monday.

It aims to enhance access from these cities to the country's tech capital.

According to the release, the airline will operate twice-daily services from Chandigarh and daily services from Ahmedabad, with the Ahmedabad-Bengaluru service increasing to twice-daily from September 16, offering greater convenience for both business and leisure travellers.

This network expansion also includes upcoming services between Dehradun and Bengaluru, set to commence from September 15, as stated in the release.

The inaugural flight from Chandigarh, officiated by Aloke Singh, Managing Director of Air India Express, departed from Chandigarh Airport at 16:40 hours. The first flight from Ahmedabad to Bengaluru took off at 11:00 hours and arrived at 13:25 hours.

To commemorate this significant milestone, a celebratory event was organised at Chandigarh Airport, during which the first guest received a commemorative boarding pass as a token of recognition.

Speaking at the launch from Chandigarh Airport, Aloke Singh, Managing Director, Air India Express, said, 'Our new routes from Ahmedabad, Chandigarh, and soon Dehradun to Bengaluru reflect our commitment to creating meaningful connections between state capitals and major metros. With thoughtfully curated fares including our cabin-bag only Xpress Lite fare, comfortable seats, hot meals onboard, and our unique 'Tales of India' aircraft liveries, we deliver a warm, distinctly Indian travel experience with every flight. This expansion is another step towards building our pan-India network serving leisure and business travellers with efficiency.'

With these new flights, guests from Ahmedabad can also access convenient one-stop connections via Bengaluru to 26 domestic destinations and three international destinations, while guests from Chandigarh can connect to 22 domestic destinations and Kathmandu. Bengaluru is the largest domestic hub of Air India Express, with over 405 weekly flights connecting 34 domestic destinations.

The airline's new Boeing aircraft, VT-BXB, which has a livery inspired by Punjab's Phulkari textile pattern, was deployed to operate the first flight from Chandigarh.

The airline has launched more than fifty such tail arts on its new aircraft as part of its 'Tales of India' initiative, which pays tribute to India's vibrant artistic heritage. (ANI)