FLY91 allocated routes under UDAN scheme

economictimes.indiatimes.com:

Fly91, a new airline helmed by top aviation veterans has been allocated its first set of routes under the Government of India’s Regional Connectivity Scheme (RCS) UDAN. The routes given under UDAN 5.0 will see FLY91 connect the cities of Sindhudurg, Jalgaon, Nanded and Agatti with business and leisure destinations of Bangalore, Goa, Hyderabad and Pune.

The allotment of these routes comes as a launch pad for FLY91 to begin their proposed commercial operations later this year, subject to regulatory approvals. «We are truly delighted to embark on this journey and excited to have been allotted Jalgaon, Sindhudurg, Nanded and Agatti as our initial regional airports for starting our RCS operations,» said Manoj Chacko, MD & CEO of FLY91.

We are committed and are on track to launch our commercial operations, subject to regulatory approvals, later this year from our home base Goa, he added. The Ministry of Civil Aviation (MoCA) today concluded the 5th round of bidding for various UDAN routes at the 5th Helicopter and Small Aircraft Summit, 2023 in Khajuraho, Madhya Pradesh.

This round of UDAN focuses on category-2 (20-80 seats) and category-3 (>80 seats) sectors and to ease the restrictions on the distance between the origin and destination sector. Fly91 is a regional carrier and it seeks to enhance air connectivity from tier 2 and tier 3 towns across India.

The airline, promoted by Harsha Raghavan, the former head of Fairfax India and Manoj Chacko, former executive vice president of defunct Kingfisher Airlines, aims to start flying in the October-December quarter. The airline will have the new Goa airport built by GMR as its main base, while the coastal state will also house the headquarter of an airline for the first time.