Last year, Vistara managed to score prestigious London Heathrow slots to operate relief flights from India to London and vice-versa. Vistara operates the route with their brand new Boeing 787 aircraft, of which the airline has two in the fleet right now. However, due to the new CoVid-19 restrictions placed in the UK, the number of flights is reduced at the time of writing this article and the new Mumbai – London Heathrow flight is postponed to launch on January 26, 2021. Now, Vistara heads to Frankfurt.

Now, Vistara has announced the launch of their second long-haul operation. Vistara will operate special, non-stop flights between Delhi and Frankfurt from February 18 through the Summer Schedule 2021. The flights have been introduced as part of the air bubble formed between India and Germany.

During the period, Vistara will initially fly twice a week between the two cities – on Thursdays and Saturdays.

Mr Leslie Thng, Chief Executive Officer, Vistara, said, “As a key gateway to Germany and an ever-thriving metropolis that is a global hub of finance, commerce and trade, Frankfurt is another significant addition to our route network that also strengthens our presence in Europe. India and Germany enjoy very strong ties, the impressions of which are visible in many areas including business, science and technology, that continue to fuel demand for travel between the two countries. Not only this, Germany is also home to hundreds of thousands of Indians and people of Indian origin. Flyers from both, India and Germany, will now have the choice of flying India’s best airline on this route that is trusted by millions of people for its world-class products, service and on-point hygiene and safety protocols.”

The airline will deploy its brand-new Boeing 787-9 Dreamliner aircraft on the route to provide non-stop flights to travellers in both directions. Vistara is also seeking necessary regulatory approvals to soon operate similar special flights to Paris, France.

Who Can Fly between India and Frankfurt?

From India to Germany:

1. Stranded nationals/residents of Germany, foreign nationals destined for EU/Schengen area, South America or Africa only and transiting through Germany or spouses of these persons, whether accompanying or otherwise
2. Any Indian national or national of Nepal or Bhutan destined for any country in the EU /Schengen area, South America or Africa only and holding a valid visa of the destination country. It would be for the airlines concerned to ensure that there is no travel restriction for Indian/Nepalese/Bhutanese nationals to enter the destination country before the issue of ticket/boarding pass to the Indian/Nepalese/Bhutanese passenger; and
3. Seamen of foreign nationalities and Seamen holding Indian passports would be allowed subject to clearance from the Ministry of Shipping. Seamen should be destined for countries in the EU/Schengen area, South America or Africa only.

From Germany to India:

As per the Indian Government’s last notification issued on June 30, 2020, stranded Indian nationals are allowed to enter the country.

1. Indian nationals or nationals of Nepal or Bhutan stranded in any country in the EU/Schengen area, South America or Africa only;
2. All Overseas Citizen of India (OCI) cardholders and PIO cardholders holding passports of any country;
3. All foreign nationals (from any country in EU/Schengen area, South America or Africa only) intending to visit India for any purpose (including their dependents on the appropriate category of dependent visa) except those on Tourist Visa; and
4. Seamen from the EU/Schengen area, South America or Africa only.
5. Passengers travelling on flights from India to Germany should be destined for countries in the EU/Schengen area, South America or Africa. Similarly, only passengers originating from countries in the EU/Schengen area, South America or Africa should be allowed to travel on the flights from Germany to India.

How much would it cost?

The one-way fares from Delhi to Frankfurt start from INR 53,499 in Economy Class round trip, INR 82,599 in Premium Economy round trip, and INR 149,899 in Business Class round trip. Bookings for these flights are progressively opened on all channels, including Vistara’s website, mobile app, and through travel agents such as MakeMyTrip.

Bottomline

Vistara has a superior product as compared to Air India on this route any day. It is excellent news anyways for Vistara and its patrons, given how the airline is at least getting a toe-hold into the Frankfurt market and should be able to build upon its presence there after getting started with operations.

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