Bangkok flight takes off today

Akash Ghai

Tribune News Service

Mohali, December 10

The maiden direct flight from Chandigarh to Bangkok is all set to take off tomorrow. The 162-seater aircraft is not yet fully booked and the ticket is still available for around Rs 17,000.

According to sources, around 125 seats have been booked in the Air India flight, which will take off at 2 pm tomorrow following a brief ceremony. The flight has 150 economy class and 12 business class seats.

Earlier, it was being expected that the direct flight to Bangkok, especially the maiden one, would be booked instantly. Travel agents cite the ongoing exams in schools as one of the reasons behind the flight not being booked to capacity. 

“Schoolchildren are busy with their exams and so are parents in helping with the preparations. Besides, there are no holidays these days,” said Aman, a local travel agent. 

“The other reason is that tomorrow is Monday, the first day of the week. No working person would like to go on a fun trip on the first day of the week, especially when there are no holidays,” said Aman. 

A local resident, Deepak Kumar, said he, along with his family, wanted to go to Bangkok on the maiden flight. “However, it is difficult to spare three-four days in a working week. So we had to skip the idea,” said Deepak Kumar.

The flight will reach Bangkok at 8 pm (Bangkok time). It will operate from the local airport thrice a week — Monday, Wednesday and Friday. On Wednesday and Friday, the departure time will be 1.25 pm. 

The Chandigarh-Bangkok flight will be the third international flight from the Chandigarh international airport at Mohali, which has already been air-connected with Dubai and Sharjah.