MARGAO: Goans and the Goan diaspora, presently based in the United Kingdom (UK) and Europe, who booked flight tickets to Goa via Air India, are feeling gutted and grounded.
They are upset that their direct flight from Gatwick Airport in London will now land at Manohar International Airport (MIA) at Mopa and not at Dabolim Airport.
Many such persons, who live in South Goa, said that they received messages from Air India that the destination airport of their pre-booked flight has been shifted to Mopa. They said that they will have to spend more than expected on travelling from Mopa to their homes. There was concern if this is going to be the situation in the future and even for AI flights from Goa to London in view of the announcement made by the company.
“We will now only fly from the newly launched @miagoaairport to Gatwick 3X weekly. (From 21st July 2023) To celebrate, inspired by Mario Miranda, a tribute to - our favourite artist from Goa and forever a part of the Air India art legacy. Air India is the first carrier to fly internationally from the Manohar International Airport, Goa. Note - The flights will start operations from the same from 21st July 2023 onwards,” stated a tweet from Air India.
It may be noted that Air India earlier operated direct flights thrice weekly from Dabolim to Heathrow before shifting to Gatwick from March 26, 2023.
In the last two months, there have been complaints about flights from London to Goa getting cancelled or postponed too.
However, there has been no official information about the status of future flights from Dabolim to London with the Airport Authority of India (AAI) officials also stating they are not aware of such developments.
Given the amount of traffic to London from Goa and back has always been via Dabolim airport and how this has been a preferred option not just for local residents in South District but also for tourism and allied businesses, concerns have been raised about the impact that will be felt in South Goa if flights operating to the UK from Dabolim are reduced or stopped.
“For the airlines, this is still Goa but it makes a huge difference for us. Passengers who need to travel to the South will have to shell out a lot on taxis to travel from Mopa. Not everyone is in a position to have family or friends to drive all the way to Mopa to pick them up,” said Naguesh Kamat, whose family member is flying via Air India on July 29th which will now land at Mopa.
“The government was speaking about starting a third airport as a way to assuage our fears but if this continues and airlines shift to Mopa, our worst fears about Dabolim airport will become a reality as Dabolim has limitations due to the Navy,” added Ralph Pereira, a tourism entrepreneur from South Goa.