Low-cost carrier SpiceJet has started its air services to Ras Al Khaimah (RAK) from India with its first flight landing in the Gulf city from Delhi on Friday, making it the airline’s 12th international destination.

The launch of the services to one of the seven Emirates of the United Arab Emirates (UAE), comes more than a year after the Gurugram-based airline announced its plans to launch a new international airline with RAK international airport besides making it the first overseas hub in the UAE.

SpiceJet flight SG 160 took off from Delhi’s IGI Airport at 10:30 PM (local time) on November 26, to reach Ras Al Khaimah at 12:50 AM on Friday.

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The return flight, SG 161, departed at 1:50 AM to reach Delhi at 6:40 AM on Friday, SpiceJet said in a release.

In line with the aviation tradition to mark key milestones, the inaugural flight was greeted with a grand water cannon salute upon its arrival at the Ras Al Khaimah international airport, it added.

The flight will be operated twice a week, the airline said, adding the Delhi-Ras Al Khaimah route will be operational on Thursdays and Sundays, while the flight on the return leg will operate on Fridays and Mondays.

“The addition of Ras Al Khaimah as our 12th international destination marks an important milestone for us and represents a major stepping up of our commercial operations,” said Ajay Singh, Chairman & Managing Director, SpiceJet.

Singh further said, “Ras Al Khaimah airport has been an important partner for SpiceJet since the signing of an MoU with them last year and they are a major part of our expansion plans, which are to deliver more services to more destinations across the Indian sub-continent and the rest of the world.”

Ras Al Khaimah, the fourth-largest emirate of the UAE, is known for its close proximity to Dubai and is one of the key business hubs in the Emirates owing to world-class infrastructure, easy accessibility to seaports and international airports, among others.

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It is also an important hub for SpiceJet in the Gulf region. The airline has operated around 350 cargo and 286 repatriation flights to and from the city since the nationwide lockdown in India, the release stated.

“As an Indian airline, we enjoy a significant amount of goodwill within Indian communities at the destinations we serve, with the UAE being no exception. We intend to build on this by delivering excellent value for our new service,” Singh said.

“We are very excited to be playing a part in Ras Al Khaimah’s and the UAE’s post-Covid-19 recovery and look forward to building a strong rapport with SpiceJet passengers flying into and out of RAK airport,” he said.

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