Punjab's New Airport Is Open — and It Connects to London, Paris & Milan
Air India's Halwara launch gives incentive planners a direct line into India's industrial heartland.
There's a version of this story that reads simply as domestic aviation news. Punjab's New Airport Is Open, airline starts flying. Fine. But underneath that headline is something considerably more interesting for incentive planners and corporate travel buyers with Indian market connections. A brand-new gateway into one of India's most commercially significant regions, now stitched directly into a global flight network.
Air India has announced Halwara as its newest destination, enhancing access for travellers from the industrial heartland of Punjab to Delhi and beyond. Beginning 15 May 2026, Air India operates two flights every day between Delhi and Halwara using its A320 Family aircraft — becoming the first airline to launch flights to Halwara.
The clever bit? The flight schedule has been designed to offer same-day connectivity via Delhi to destinations across the United Kingdom and the rest of Europe. Passengers from Halwara and surrounding areas can travel with Air India to Delhi and take seamless, onward connections to destinations such as London, Birmingham, Rome, Milan, and Paris.
Why Planners Should Care
Ludhiana is sometimes called the Manchester of India — and the comparison is apt. It's a manufacturing titan, home to India's largest textile hub, significant auto-parts production, and a thriving business community with deep international ties. The demand for air travel from this region is driven by business traffic, the large migrant community, and Visiting Friends and Relatives travellers.
For incentive houses working with manufacturing, textiles, or trade clients, this new connectivity matters. Both for bringing delegates from the region to international incentive destinations, and for bringing international groups into Punjab for immersive business and cultural programmes.
Picture This
Punjab is not a destination that makes many incentive shortlists — and that's precisely why it should. It is a region of enormous cultural richness. The Golden Temple in Amritsar, one of the world's most humbling and beautiful sacred spaces. Harvest festivals and folk traditions that give the region its particular energy. And the legendary Punjabi hospitality that means no group leaves underfed or underwhelmed.
For corporate groups visiting manufacturing clients or exploring India's industrial corridors, a Halwara-anchored itinerary offers authenticity that no Goa beach resort can replicate. A rural heritage stay in a traditional haveli, a guided market walk through the textile district, a private dinner with local industry leaders. These are the experiences that build real relationships and real memories.
And for delegates flying in from London or Paris on a single ticket with baggage checked straight through? The friction that once made Punjab feel logistically complicated has simply been removed.
The DMC Difference
Access is one thing. Curating Punjab's extraordinary cultural depth into a group programme that lands well, flows beautifully, and feels genuinely special — that's another. A great Indian DMC brings the relationships, the permissions, and the local wisdom that turn an interesting destination into an unforgettable one.
Contact our DMC partners in India to design a Punjab group programme that your clients won't find anywhere else.
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