New Delhi, March 17 (IANS) Air India on Tuesday said it will operate additional flights to Europe and North America from this week through next week amid strong demand for international travel due to the ongoing situation in the West Asia region. The airline will operate 36 additional flights connecting Delhi and Mumbai with key destinations such as London (Heathrow), Toronto, Frankfurt and Zurich between March 19 and March 28.The move will add over 10,000 seats across these routes, enhancing capacity and offering more travel options at a time when international connectivity remains constrained, the airline said.

The additional services will be operated on the following sectors: Delhi-London (Heathrow), Mumbai-London (Heathrow), Delhi-Frankfurt, Delhi-Zurich and Delhi-Toronto. This follows Air India’s earlier announcement of operating 78 additional flights on nine routes between March 10 and March 18 to meet surging demand. Bookings for these flights are being progressively opened across all channels, including the airline’s official website, mobile app and authorised travel agents. Air India said the capacity augmentation aims to support passengers amid evolving geopolitical conditions impacting travel demand and route availability.

Earlier, the Directorate General of Civil Aviation (DGCA) allowed temporary relaxations in flight duty norms for Air India’s long-haul flights to Europe, the US and Canada, as the airline has been forced to take longer routes due to airspace restrictions amid the Iran conflict, impacting operations and passenger movement. IndiGo, meanwhile, last week announced it will operate 252 weekly flights to and from West Asia between March 16 and March 28. The airline’s services include about 126 weekly flights to and from Saudi Arabia, 98 to and from the United Arab Emirates, and 28 to and from Oman during the period. However, IndiGo said operations to several destinations in the region -- Doha, Kuwait, Bahrain, Dammam, Fujairah, Ras Al Khaimah and Sharjah -- will remain suspended until March 28 as part of temporary network adjustments.

/IANS