Additional 10 flights would port at Velana International Airport (VIA) following the winter season to European countries, according to state.
Economic Minister Mohamed Saeed, who is in-charge of evaluating and monitoring the progress of airport's development said that additional 10 flights will land at the international airport per day. However he had not specified the current porting numbers.
Winter starts around November in the European continent which lasts until February. During this period several new international airlines are setting up to commence their flights to Maldives according to Maldives Airports Company Limited (MACL) which operates VIA.
Among the most notable airlines commencing their flights include one of the most popular airlines in European region, Air France. Flights from the airline will land on Thursdays and Saturdays every week. The airline's Boeing 777 brand flights with a passenger capacity of 312 will be traveling back and forth Maldives.
Roma's Al-Italia will commence its flights during this period, landing on Tuesdays, Fridays and Saturdays. The airline will have its AirBus 330 flights with a capacity of 250 passengers landing to Maldives. Apart from France and Italy's contribution, several other international airlines will increase its flights and capacity in the coming months.
While state has confirmed of additional and new flights landing in Maldives, the country has registered a total of 892,025 visitors til the end of August. Last year's visitor count by this period was at 842,635 making it a 5.9% increase in figures.
Maldivian state estimates a tourist visitor count of 1.3 million before the year's end.
Government expects the completion of current development phase of Velana International Airport will boost the visitor capacity from 4 million to 7 million annually.
