British Airways to introduce a third daily flight between Delhi-London Heathrow

Mumbai: The Prime Minister of Britain Keir Starmer has unlocked opportunities for British business to grow and expand—particularly the aviation sector— during his visit to India.

"It comes as British Airways has today confirmed it will introduce a third daily flight between Delhi and London Heathrow in 2026, subject to regulatory and capacity approval, and will look for further growth opportunities in the country as trade between the UK and India increases,” said Business and Trade Secretary Peter Kyle.

"Our ties with India were established over 100 years ago and today we have around 2,500 British Airways colleagues based there. We’ve been steadily increasing capacity between India and the UK over the years and we’re now operating 56 direct services from five Indian cities each week,” said Sean Doyle, Chairman and Chief Executive of British Airways.

“The Free Trade Agreement with India will boost economic momentum between our two countries and British Airways really sits at the centre of that activity, acting as an enabler for increased trade. We will develop our own network alongside increased economic activity so the FTA for our business is very good news.

"As the airline that offers the biggest network of any European carrier into the North Atlantic, we also help connect India to the US and beyond, so when you add this factor into the mix, there’s a lot to be excited about for our two connected economies,” he said.

According to Boyle, Manchester Airport will also launch a new direct route to Delhi operated by IndiGo, adding to its existing Mumbai service and making it the only UK airport outside London with connections to both cities.

“The expansion is expected to generate over £50 million in annual exports, £25 million in tourism income, and 450 new jobs, while boosting productivity and research collaboration across the North,” he said.

“We are proud to connect the North to the world and today’s announcement means people and businesses across the region will now have direct access to both India’s financial centre and its capital. That will drive tens of millions of pounds in economic value every year, supporting the Government’s growth agenda and boosting the benefits of the new UK-India trade deal,” noted Manchester Airport Managing Director Chris Woodroofe.

"“The UK and India are natural partners, working in a win-win collaboration for the benefit of people in both nations.

"Our competitively advantaged technologies and engineering capabilities across air, land and sea applications, position us to be the strategic partner to India in aviation, defence, critical infrastructure and energy security, creating jobs and securing sustained economic growth in both countries,” added Tufan Erginbilgic, CEO of Rolls-Royce.