• January 28, 2025

Is Kochi-London Gatwick direct flights cancelled? Twitter post sparks concern: CIAL not notified

Is Kochi-London Gatwick direct flights cancelled? Twitter post sparks concern: CIAL not notified

LONDON Jan 28: An unconfirmed report on X has sparked concern among the UK Malayalee community, suggesting that Air India plans to cease direct flights between Kochi-London Gatwick and Goa-London Gatwick.

According to the post, Air India will discontinue its direct Kochi-London Gatwick route from March 30th, 2025.

As of now, there is no official notification from Air India about this news.

Sources from Cochin International Airport Limited (CIAL) have informed to this website that they haven’t been notified of such a news. According to them the schedule for direct flights between London-Gatwick and Kochi remains as agreed prior.

A spokesperson from another airline stated that private airlines reserve the right to make operational decisions, such as route changes or cancellations, at any time. These decisions are typically not bound by a specific timeframe, allowing airlines the flexibility to adapt to changing circumstances and market conditions as needed.

The post of X also states that Air India’s direct flights between Amritsar and London Gatwick will increase to four times a week beginning in the summer of 2025, while weekly flights connecting Goa-Mopa to London Gatwick will decrease to three.

Consequently, London Gatwick will be directly connected to just three cities – Ahmedabad with five weekly flights, Amritsar with four weekly flights, and Goa with three weekly flights.

Currently, Air India operates three weekly flights between Kochi and London on Tuesdays, Thursdays, and Saturdays using Boeing 787-8 Dreamliner aircraft.

In light of these developments, the UK Malayalee community is eagerly awaiting an official announcement from Air India or CIAL regarding the future of the Kochi-London Gatwick route, as any changes may have a significant impact on their travel plans and connectivity.

In September 2024, the Tata Group-owned Air India (AI) flight AI149, scheduled to depart from Kochi (COK) to London Gatwick (LGW) on a Saturday, was cancelled due to a technical malfunction. The last-minute cancellation affected approximately 250 passengers, triggering protests at the airport. Air India managed to reroute some passengers through Mumbai, connecting them to a flight bound for London Gatwick airport. However, this solution did not accommodate all affected travelers.

The remaining passengers received several options from the airline. These included a full refund, free accommodation until the next available London flight on Tuesday and coverage of last-mile travel expenses. Despite these offers, a group of disgruntled passengers staged a protest at the Cochin International Airport, expressing their frustration with the sudden change in their travel plans.

Airline authorities had then said that the cancellation resulted from a detected technical snag. The absence of a spare aircraft exacerbated the situation, leaving passengers stranded.

Tata Sons, parent of Air India Group has recently reported that the company nearly halved its losses in FY24 with Air India reporting a loss of Rs 4,444 crore in FY24 compared with Rs 11,388 crore in FY23.