We were recently onboard Go Air’s inaugural flight from Chhatrapati Shivaji Maharaj International Airport Mumbai to New Bangkok International Airport (Suvarnabhumi). The inaugural flight, on August 1, was met by officials from Go Air and some media representatives from India travelling to Bangkok. The welcome ceremony included a cake-cutting celebration and media delegates were gifted mini models of Airbus A320 neo aircraft, which is being deployed on this Mumbai-Bangkok route.
The flight G8-025 departed from gate 46B at terminal 2 of the Chhatrapati Shivaji Maharaj International Airport, Mumbai at 1345 (local time) and arrived in Bangkok at 1955 (local time). Currently, the low-cost carrier is flying four non-stop daily flights in to Bangkok — Mumbai-Bangkok and Delhi-Bangkok routes. The budget airline kicked off its international operation last year with the launch of flights between Delhi and Phuket.
Commenting on this new international route, an official from Go Air says, “While our network planning team was evaluating flights to Bangkok in 2019, the team realised that there has been a significant increase in the number of Indians preferring Bangkok as a quick gateway destination, which has led to an increase in the demand for travel flights to Bangkok.”
The A320 neo aircraft is configured for 186 passengers (in a comfortable layout) out of which the first two rows are dedicated to ‘Go Business’ passengers. Most of the seats on the first few rows on the inaugural flight were reserved for Go Air officials and journalists from India. The seats were comfortable and offer enough leg space if you are on the first row. The cabin crew was cordial and were able to maintain a calm atmosphere among passengers during turbulence.
Orders for the meals were taken soon after take-off. The onboard food menu, which is not free of cost, includes perishable menu starting at ₹500, non-perishable (hot meals) for ₹350, quick bites (such as cookies, popcorns and nachos) from ₹70 and refreshing beverages for ₹200.
Upon arrival, we were given a Thai-style welcome with garland and sweets.
Price: Currently, return fares start at approximately ₹15,000 per person
Duration: 4 hours 35 minutes
Glimpses from the inaugural ceremony:
