Marking 70 years of its first flight from Mumbai to London on 8 June, Air India, the national carrier of India, is inviting the diaspora in the UK to share their memories and journey experiences on the first flight or with the airlines in its early days. The Indian community that has done remarkably well in the UK and added fortunes to Britain's economy, had many of them arriving to the country by Air India in early 1950s and 60s.
The first direct flight and a milestone in the history of Indian civil aviation, took off from Mumbai on 8 June 1948. Malabar Princess, as the aircraft was called, was a 40-seater Lockheed L-749 Constellation, with Captain K.R. Guzdar in command. It made its 5,000 mile journey from Mumbai to London via Cairo and Geneva and landed in London on 10 June. The flight’s time of departure was late in the evening and of the 35 passengers boarded the flight, 29 were bound for London and six for Geneva. The flight included some 'Maharajas' and 'Nawabs' and it arrived in London in the early hours, taking a little more than 24 hours. For the second leg of the journey from Cairo to London, Captain D.K. Jatar was in command.
The airlines have undergone tremendous changes ever since, modernised over the years, and now with the new Boeing 787 Dreamliners, it covers the distance between India and UK well under 10 hours.
Debashis Golder, who has taken over as the new Regional Manager, UK and Europe told Asian Voice, “We want to reach out to people who made some of the early journeys, to share their memories and pictures with us, which we could feature in our inflight magazine and also catalogue to mark those glorious early days of air travel.
"Many of these journeys will also mark the arrival of Indians who went on to make their life and fortunes in the UK or friends and family who made visits back and forth during a time when the availability and flight times were not what they are today. It marks an important chapter in the India-UK relationship.”
Golder who has been been the Deputy General Manager of Air India in Mumbai prior to moving to the UK and the Regional Manager of Asia Pacific before that, has taken over the operations in UK and Europe at very important times. The UK market is undoubtedly one of the airline's busiest sectors, having recently added three direct flights between Birmingham and Amritsar.
With MP Tan Dhesi campaigning for a direct flight between London and Amritsar, Air India may also start flying this route, though currently they are constrained by airport slots. It is also believed that the direct flight to Goa, daily flights to Ahmedabad and Canada are some of the desired routes. When asked if Kolkata could get a direct flight from the UK in the future, Golder seemed optimistic, provided there were enough passengers all around the year, including travelling Business Class.
Amritsar route has a long standing demand, especially with tourists heading to Golden temple as well as the diaspora out on annual pilgrimage. Golder added, “The third or fourth generation Indians, who are now settled in the UK for years, visit their roots to stay connected and the direct connection has certainly proved popular.”
The airlines re-started its London-Ahmedabad direct flight in 2016, after relentless campaigning by Asian Voice and Gujarat Samachar newsweeklies, along with other Indian organisations.
The airlines which is now running at full capacity from Heathrow airport, believes it has been instrumental to the UK-India relationship and a strong trust from the diaspora has proven as a key to its growth.
Currently with its latest addition of flights to Tel Aviv, Israel, for the next phase of expansion, Air India is looking at the African continent, with flights to East and South Africa, which the airline used to serve in the past until the early 2000s.
