Goemkarponn desk
PANAJI: Ministry of Home Affairs has designated Manohar International Airport, Mopa, Goa, as an authorised point for entry/exit from India.
The first international flight is scheduled to take off from MIA to London-Gatwick on July 21.
Tata Group-owned Air India will become the first carrier to operate international flights from the Manohar International Airport (MIA) in North Goa. The airport was inaugurated in January this year.
The carrier announced flights from North Goa’s Manohar International Airport to Gatwick Airport, the second-largest airport in the United Kingdom, starting from July 21, 2023.
The airline said the flight from Goa is a tribute to Mario Miranda — “our favourite artist from Goa and forever a part of the Air India art legacy.”
Air India will operate a thrice-a-week service from the Manohar International Airport, the company said in a tweet. In all, the airline now operates 49 flights in the UK per week.
The airline operates 43 flights to London (Heathrow and Gatwick) and six to Birmingham. Air India also operates 31 weekly flights to Heathrow, London from Delhi and Mumbai.
Manohar International Airport is developed and operated by GMR Goa International Airport Ltd (GGIAL), a subsidiary of GMR Airports Infrastructure Ltd (GIL).
Dabolim Airport Director S.V.T. Dhanamjaya Rao said he was unaware of these developments.
The Congress alleged that the BJP government at the Centre and Goa were pressuring international airlines to shift their operations from Dabolim Airport to Mopa only to pave the way for the closure of the civilian airport.
Congress leader Elvis Gomes said that a conspiracy had been hatched to close down the Dabolim International Airport, built in 1955 and appealed to the people not to vote for BJP as a mark of protest.
