way from India and returning through the North Atlantic airspace.
At the moment the flight, which was started in December last year, operates through the North Atlantic airspace in both directions.
“The aircraft will receive tail winds (which will help push the flight faster to its destination) in both directions. This will help the aircraft reach San Francisco and Delhi in the return direction 90 minutes earlier,” a senior official of the Directorate General of Civil Aviation told reporters.
The saving in time on the flight will translate into a saving of about 7,000 litres of fuel in each direction, and several crores of rupees for the Maharaja.
The new flight routing has become possible due to certification of new rules for aircraft operating over the Pacific Ocean which were not there earlier.
In 1947 the now defunct US carrier Pan Am launched regular around the world flights. At that time Pan Am flight 001 started its journey in San Francisco touching down in Honolulu, Hong Kong, Bangkok, Delhi, Beirut, Istanbul, Frankfurt, London and New York. Pan Am flight 002, started its journey in New York touching down in London, Frankfurt, Istanbul, Beirut, Delhi, Bangkok, Hong Kong, Honolulu before reaching San Francisco.