Air India to launch domestic cargo ops from Nagpur

National air carrier, Air India, plans to launch its domestic cargo operations from Nagpur next month, a senior National Aviation Company of India Ltd official said.     

"We plan to launch our domestic cargo operations from Nagpur next month with four dedicated freighters," the official told here on strict condition of anonymity.     

NACIL is the holding company, formed after the merger of Air India and Indian (erstwhile Indian Airlines) into one entity.     

Air India had planned to launch the service in October but had to defer it as two of its cargo aircraft had to be sent for mandatory checks following an advisory from the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA), the official said.     

These aircraft are expected to join the fleet shortly along with one Airbus A310-200 configured freighter next month, the official said.     

The carrier plans to commence domestic cargo operations with four configured Boeing 737-200 aircraft, using Nagpur as the hub and connecting the east, west, north and south with one freighter dedicated for each route.     

"In all, we will be connecting six destinations -- Kolkata, Mumbai, Delhi and Chennai. Chennai will also be linked to Hyderabad and Bangalore," the official said.     

Presently, Air India has seven configured freighters in its fleet, with four B-737-200 and three Airbus A310-300. One more A310-300 is expected to join the fleet after its conversion in December.