Direct flight service between Belarus, India to start this week: Belarus Ambassador

New Delhi [India], August 9 (ANI): Andrei Rzheussky, Ambassador of Belarus to India, on Wednesday, said that the first-ever direct flight between Minsk, the capital of Belarus and Delhi, India will start from August 12. 
While speaking to ANI, Ambassador said that a lot of efforts were made to launch a regular flight service between Belarus and Indian and that the service will commence on August 12. 
"It was not the easy way. For the last couple of years, we did our routine job just to fulfil this project into life. And now I am proudly announcing that at the end of this week (on Saturday) the first ever scheduled flight from Minsk to India will take place," he said. 
The Belarus Ambassador also stated that only a couple of flights were operated before this regular flight service. He also highlighted the importance of this flight service in terms of business and tourism. 
"It's a tremendous event for tourist exchange, for business trips, and for many other opportunities which can show both the countries to our people more closely. India is a very interesting country with a very rich history and traditions. But besides India, I would like to mention that Belarus also is a very interesting tourist destination," he pointed out. 
He further said, "Belarus is called as a 'lungs of Europe' because more than 40 per cent of its territory is covered by forest. We have more than 10,000 lakes and rivers. So it's also called the blue eye of Europe. In my country, there are a lot of interesting destinations just to show to Indian people. We have different opportunities in agricultural tourism, in just general tourism, for sightseeing different Destinations, medical, tourism, even industrial tourism." 
The flght service will be launched by the Belarusian Airline Belavia on Minsk-Delhi-Minsk route starting this next week. 
The flight schedule that begins on August 11 (local time) starts from a weekly flight with the departure from Minsk on Fridays. In return, the flight will depart from Delhi on Saturdays. 
According to a tentative schedule, the flight will depart from Minsk at 20:25 hrs, and the flight will land at Delhi's IGI airport at 05:35 hrs. The total travel time is 6 hours and 40 minutes. 
In return, the flight from Delhi will depart at 06:55 hrs, and the flight will land at Minsk at 11:40 hrs, and the travel time is 7 hours and 15 minutes. 
The time for all airports is local, the time shift between Minsk and Delhi is 2.5 hours, according to officials. 
Belavia Director General Igor Cherginets said: “We know that passengers have been looking forward to the opening of this flight. Our specialists have been working hard for a long time to fulfil the travellers’ wishes. I can firmly say that this is one of the most interesting destinations in the route network of the airline. We have solved the problem of those, who have long dreamed to dive into the Indian flavour and experience the culture of another country, but were not ready to set out on a long journey with layovers.”
“Now, to travel to India all you have to do is buy one ticket, take a good mood and get on the plane, and we will take you to new emotions. We also expect that the launch of flights between Minsk and Delhi will foster the development of cooperation between Belarus and India” Cherginets said as per a release issued by the Belarusian Airline Belavia.
Belarus citizens need to have a visa to travel to India. The visa can be obtained online: an electronic visa is issued for a period of 30 days, a year or five years. More information on how to get a visa and the required documents can be found on the website of the Embassy of India in Minsk. (ANI)