Starting on September 16th, direct flights every Tuesday, Thursday and Saturday between Indira Gandhi International Airport in New Delhi and Copenhagen Airport will tie the two capitals closer together.

In 2016 alone, traffic between Denmark and India grew by 10.1%, and now passengers can travel directly without layovers. New Delhi is the newest addition to the list of the more than 165 destinations that can be reached directly from Copenhagen Airport.

In 2016, Copenhagen Airport averaged 726 daily departures and arrivals and a total of 29 million passengers, making it the third-busiest airport in Northern Europe, and by far the busiest for international travel in Scandinavia. Copenhagen is also the main hub of Scandinavian Airlines (SAS).

Copenhagen Airport is located 15 minutes from the centre of Copenhagen, the economic and cultural capital of Denmark, and 30 minutes from Malmö, Sweden’s 3rd largest city, connected to Copenhagen by bridge. Apart from most of Denmark, Copenhagen Airport also serves the 40% of Swedes living in Southern Sweden. In total, 4.6 million people live within 2 hours from Copenhagen Airport.

The direct flight has the potential to strengthen ties between India and Denmark, especially the Greater Copenhagen Area. Notably, the area:

  • Had a GDP of 173 billion euro in 2013.
  • Generates around 40% of Denmark’s GDP
  • Attracts around 85% of foreign investment
  • Created around 75% of all new jobs in Denmark in the past decade
  • Is home to companies that produce around half of Denmark’s exports
  • Is the recipient of Denmark’s largest private and public investments in research and development

With increasing cooperation, trade, and tourism between Denmark and India, the direct connection answers a demand for greater connectivity between the two countries. In 2016, the number of visas to Denmark issued in India increased by 20% compared to the year before.

Improving the connectivity between India and Scandinavia further, Air India also recently announced the opening of a direct flight between New Delhi and Stockholm three days a week.
This means that India and Scandinavia will be directly connected by flight six days a week.

Altogether, Scandinavia, consisting of Denmark, Norway and Sweden has a population of 21 million people, a GDP of 1.2 trillion USD, and growing trade with India.

To make Indo-Scandinavian travel even easier, Air India and SAS, both Star Alliance members, have entered into a code-share agreement, making it possible for passengers to book their entire trip between India and Scandinavia including local connecting flights, from either Air India or SAS.

“India is a country of utmost importance in Asia – politically and economically. Many good forces in Denmark and India have been working closely together to reopen a direct connection between our two countries, benefiting growth, trade, and tourism. Additionally, it is an important step in the bilateral strategic partnership between Denmark and India,” says Ambassador of Denmark to India, Mr. Peter Taksøe-Jensen.

Julian Bevis, senior director for the Mærsk group in India, welcomed air India’s announcement of a direct link between Delhi and Copenhagen saying that this would greatly facilitate interactions between the two countries and was therefore a most beneficial development. He said that he looked forward very much to travelling on the inaugural flight to Copenhagen

“I am very excited to hear about this new route. Novo Nordisk have more than 1.500 people in our Global Shared Service Centre in Bangalore and travelling to Denmark is cumbersome with existing routes. I sincerely hope that we can benefit from this new route and I’m looking forward to try it out,” says MD of Novo Nordisk Service Centre India, Mr. Christian Holm Jönsson.

“We appreciate Air India’s commitment in expanding the access between the two countries. The direct flight will boost seamless connectivity and contribute to strengthening the business ties. This will have a positive effect on both Indian and Danish companies as well as enhancing overall relations. Doing business in India has just become much easier,” says Country Head and CEO of FLSmidth India, Mr. Carsten Riisberg Lund.

“It is indeed great news that Air India is now commencing direct flights between Copenhagen and Delhi. Together with the newly announced direct flights between Delhi and Stockholm the connectivity between Scandinavia and Delhi improves significantly. We at Ramboll had nearly 600 return flights last year between Scandinavia and India so we welcome this direct route very much,” says the Chairman of Ramboll India, Mr. Søren Holm Johansen.

“Heartiest congratulations to Air India for starting direct Delhi-Copenhagen flight services. A much-awaited initiative, this will help in improving business relations between the two countries and also give a fillip to tourism between the two nations. We are confident that with this, more and more Danish companies will set up businesses in India and be a part of the ‘Make in India’ success story”, says spokesperson of Novo Nordisk India, Mr. Vinay Ransiwal.