Its newest destination is the southern city of Hyderabad, known for its built heritage and royal cuisine.
Details on the Charminar monument in Hyderabad’s Old City. (Photo: Akhila Katuri/Unsplash)
Bangkok-based budget airline Nok Air will soon be transporting customers to India for the first time since the start of the Covid-19 pandemic. The low-cost carrier previously served two destinations in the country: it began operating limited flights on its inaugural Indian route, Bangkok Don Mueang–Vishakhapatnam, in April 2019. That October then saw the debut of services between Bangkok and Guwahati — the main gateway to India’s northeast — but this was halted at the end of January 2020.
On February 21, Nok Air will launch thrice-weekly flights from Don Mueang to Hyderabad aboard Boeing 737-800 aircraft, offering just over 1,500 seats between the two cities per week. On Tuesdays, Thursdays, and Saturdays, outbound flight DD 958 will depart Bangkok at 9:30 p.m. and arrive at Hyderabad’s Rajiv Gandhi International Airport at 11:45 p.m. after an estimated three hours and 45 minutes in the air. The return service, DD 959, will take off every Wednesday, Friday, and Sunday at 12:45 a.m. to touch down in Don Mueang at 6:05 a.m. local time. Fares start from THB 3,990 (about US$116) one-way.
Home to India’s fourth-busiest airport, Hyderabad joins three other international destinations in the Nok Air network: Ho Chi Minh City, Yangon, and the southern Chinese city of Nanning. While no other carrier serves the Telangana state capital from Don Mueang, Thai Airways flies daily from its hub at Bangkok Suvarnabhumi Airport.
