Air India has announced plans to launch nation-wide cargo services from 1 July with its new extended operations connecting six key destinations, including: Delhi, Kolkata, Chennai, Mumbai, Bangalore and Hyderabad.
The national carrier said that it has completed conversion of four of its Boeing 737 aircraft which will be used on these new services with payload of around 12 to 15 tonnes each. The destinations will be connected with Nagpur, which will act as the hub for all Air India cargo operations and the services will run six-days a week.
According to Air India, airports director, IJK Dhas, the cargo service will be identical to the night air mail service which used to be in operation 45 years ago, which allowed the department of posts to exchange parcel-bags.
The fi rst cargo flight from Kolkata will arrive at 2 am and return with cargo at 3.40 am. The second flight from Mumbai will land here at 2.20 am, followed by another from Delhi at 2.25 am. The last flight from Chennai-via-Bangalore and Hyderabad will arrive at 2.45 am. After exchanging cargo all four flights will return to their original destinations.