Maldivian to fly to Hanimaadhoo

Maldivian, the national carrier of Maldives, will commence twice-a-week direct flight operations from the Thiruvananthapuram international airport to Hanimaadhoo and back from February 3.

The flight operations to the third international airport in Maldives, Hanimaadhoo (HAQ), come in the wake of certification of the international airport from February 2, airline sources told The Hindu . The flight operations to the destination are in addition to the daily flights from here to Male airport using A-320 aircraft.

The third international airport is in the north-most end of Maldives Island and close to Thiruvananthapuram. The flying time to Hanimadhoo will be 45 minutes. (It is 55 minutes to Ibrahim Nazir International Airport. The third airport, Gan international airport, is in the south end).

The flight operations on Thursday and Sunday will use DH 200 and DH 300 aircraft. The aircraft can accommodate 37 and 50 passengers respectively. The airline would deploy aircraft as per demand. The new service would increase seat capacity in the sector to 354.

On both days, the Q2 708 flight will depart from Hanimadhoo at 1.15 a.m. local time. In the return direction, Q2 709 will depart from here at 3.30 a.m. to arrive Hanimadhoo at 4.15 a.m. local time.

Maldivian has launched its exclusive holiday division, Maldivian Holidays, to cater to the requirements of tourists to the island nation, sources said.

http://www.thehindu.com/todays-paper/tp-national/tp-kerala/maldivian-to-fly-to-hanimaadhoo/article4347263.ece