Air India & Drukair sign interline deal to boost India-Bhutan connectivity

NEW DELHI: Air India and Drukair, also known as Royal Bhutan Airlines, have entered into an interline partnership aimed at making travel between India, Bhutan and international destinations more seamless.

The agreement will allow passengers to book journeys combining flights operated by both airlines on a single ticket. It will also provide coordinated baggage handling and passenger transfers through Air India’s hub at Delhi’s Indira Gandhi International Airport.

For Air India passengers, the partnership opens up easier connections to Bhutan’s Paro from its wider international network via Delhi. Travellers can also connect onward from Paro to domestic destinations including Bumthang, Gelephu and Yonphula.

The arrangement also gives passengers access to interline fares, offering greater flexibility when planning journeys across the two airlines’ networks.

For Drukair passengers, the partnership provides connections through Delhi, Guwahati and Kolkata to Air India’s domestic network. These include major Indian cities such as Bengaluru, Mumbai and Kochi.

The agreement also expands access to international destinations served by Air India, including Paris, Colombo, Newark, Frankfurt, New York, London, Melbourne, San Francisco, Sydney, Toronto and Vancouver.

Air India said the partnership strengthens its connectivity across the South Asian Association for Regional Cooperation (SAARC) region, which it considers an extended home market.

“Bhutan is a valued part of this region, and we are happy to enable easy access to Bhutan for our guests,” said Air India’s chief commercial officer Nipun Aggarwal. He added that the airline also looks forward to connecting Drukair passengers to its wider domestic and global network.

Drukair’s chief executive officer Tandi Wangchuk said the agreement marks a milestone in the airline’s efforts to expand global connectivity and improve the passenger experience.

The partnership is expected to support both tourism and business travel by reducing the friction involved in connecting across India and Bhutan. For travellers, the biggest change is simple: more destinations, one booking and fewer pieces of the journey to juggle.