GoAir can now fly to 9 international destinations

Wadia Group-owned airline GoAir can now fly to international routes by early next year as GoAir receives the government’s approval to fly to nine countries including Iran, Uzbekistan and Kazakhastan. The approval for the Mumbai-based carrier which has been operating for over a decade, comes more than two months after the Government eased the overseas flying norms for Indian airlines. The nine countries include Iran, China, Vietnam, Uzbekistan, Kazakhastan, Azerbaijan and Saudi Arabia. “We have got approval to fly to nine countries. We expect to start international operations from the next summer schedule,” GoAir Chief Executive Officer Wolfgang Prock-Schauer told PTI. Generally, the summer schedule commences from the last Sunday of March and extends to the last Saturday of October every year. GoAir would be the first Indian private carrier to fly to any CIS (Commonwealth of Independent States). CIS countries for which the carrier has got flying nod include Uzbekistan, Kazakhastan and Azerbaijan. Only in June this year, GoAir saw its fleet rise to 20 planes with the induction of first A320 neos. Around the same time, the government decided to do away with the 5/20 rule and replaced it with 0/20 norm as part of the new civil aviation policy.