Jet Likely to Get Approval for the Mumbai-Shanghai-San Francisco Flight

With the Indian government approving the proposal of China’s Great Wall cargo airline to fly to Mumbai and Chennai, it is likely that Jet Airways too will be permitted to launch its Mumbai-Shanghai-San Francisco daily flight, reported the Economic Times, citing Indo-Asian News Service as its source.

The report quoted Indian commerce and industry minister Kamal Nath as saying: “I am hopeful and optimistic that the proposal would be now cleared.”

Media reports indicate that if Jet receives clearance for its proposal, the airline would be the first foreign airline to use a Chinese hub as a transit point to a third country. It is reported that Jet has been keen on making Shanghai its hub to facilitate operations in the Asia-Pacific region, just like it has made Brussels its European hub.

The government had delayed its approval for Great Wall’s proposal after the airline was blacklisted by the US for allegedly transshipping nuclear material to Iran.

Earlier, the Indian government had given Great Wall permission to fly to New Delhi. However, it had not approved flights to Mumbai and Chennai due to the presence of nuclear establishments in the vicinity. Following this decision, the Chinese government refused to give permission to Jet to fly to China, saying the original agreement was for Great Wall airline to fly to Mumbai and Chennai.