Northwest applies for India authority
Northwest Airlines has filed a request with the U.S. Department of Transportation for broad authority to serve India. Subject to government approval, the airline said it wants to start in October a service from Minneapolis-St. Paul International Airport to Bangalore via Amsterdam.
The United States and India came to agreement in January on a treaty to open aviation markets, removing government restrictions on routes, fares, frequencies, cities served, and type of aircraft.
“The global network that Northwest offers customers through its partnerships with SkyTeam member airlines would only be enhanced by additional service to India,” said Phil Haan, Northwest executive vice president of international, alliances, and information technology and chairman, NWA Cargo. “Northwest looks forward to the final signing of the open skies agreement between the U.S. and Indian governments.”
Northwest offers two daily flights from Minneapolis/St. Paul to Mumbai, via Amsterdam through its joint venture partnership with KLM Royal Dutch Airlines.