Drukair to launch Bhutan-Singapore flights
Thimpu: Drukair, the national carrier of the Kingdom of Bhutan, which is situated in the Himalayas between China and India, is all set to launch flights to Singapore.Drukair’s Paro-Singapore route begins commercial service on 1 September 2012.
The commencement of this twice-weekly service means passengers departing from Singapore can now reach Bhutan in under six hours, saving an overnight transfer stay in Thailand or India as visitors currently have to do.Singapore is only the fifth country to be linked to Bhutan by air.
Singapore boasts strong ties with Bhutan. Apart from cooperation at both the government and people-to-people levels in areas such as education, healthcare and media, there has been a strong increase in the number of Singapore travellers heading to Bhutan.
In 2011, about 1,300 visitors from Singapore headed for Bhutan, representing an increase of more than 70% over 2010. Bhutan received over 64,000 visitors in 2011.Drukair will operate a two-class configuration using the A319 aircraft on the Paro-Singapore service.
Tandin Jamso, Chief Executive Officer of Drukair, said, “Drukair is honoured by the warm welcome given by Singapore. For Drukair, Singapore is not just another destination, but an opportunity to bring our two nations and people together. Drukair aims to connect Singapore to Bhutan, and afford its people an opportunity to experience a way of life that is slowly fading in many countries, an opportunity to experience happiness like the Bhutanese. The goal of Drukair is to eventually make Singapore our gateway to the world.”
