Singapore–Vijayawada Direct Flight Service Resumes After Long Gap; IndiGo Restarts Operations
After several years, direct flight services between Singapore and Vijayawada have resumed, offering major relief to NRIs from Andhra Pradesh. IndiGo will operate three weekly flights.
Passengers and officials greet the inaugural resumed Singapore–Vijayawada IndiGo flight at Vijayawada International Airport.
In a major boost to Andhra Pradesh’s international connectivity, the direct flight service between Singapore and Vijayawada resumed on Saturday after a long hiatus. An IndiGo Airbus A320, carrying 151 passengers, landed at Vijayawada International Airport at 7:30 am, where Gannavaram MLA Yarlagadda Venkat Rao and airport authorities welcomed the travellers.
The service was initially operated in 2018–19 with viability gap funding from the Andhra Pradesh government but was discontinued during the previous regime. Its revival has brought relief to thousands of NRIs from the Krishna, Guntur, Prakasam, and West Godavari districts.
Passengers Welcome Easier Travel
Many passengers expressed joy over the resumed route, noting that the direct connection eliminates the need to transit through Chennai.
“This is a huge relief. Earlier we had to land in Chennai and take another flight or travel by road to reach Vijayawada. Now the journey is much easier and faster,” said one returning traveller.
MLA Venkat Rao Flags Off Resumed Service
MLA Yarlagadda Venkat Rao, who relaunched the service, interacted with passengers and handed out boarding passes for the outbound Singapore flight.
He said Vijayawada airport operations have improved significantly since the coalition government took charge.
“From 2014 to 2019, the airport handled nearly 30 direct flights daily. The number dropped under the previous government, but now we operate 48 flights a day, serving over 4,000 passengers. With the efforts of Union Minister Rammohan Naidu, we were able to restart international services,” he said.
Flight Schedule & Future Expansion
IndiGo will fly the Singapore–Vijayawada route thrice a week on Tuesday, Thursday, and Saturday.
On the first day of the restarted service, there were 151 arrivals and 120 departures for Singapore that day.
The airport authorities have assured that they will make the international routes to and from Vijayawada part of their plans to make the city the leading air transportation center for Andhra Pradesh.
