The MHA has announced to reopen international air travel in India. The announcement, which came out on Wednesday, is under the government’s “Vande Bharat” Mission (VBM) and an elongated part of the many new guidelines released on relaxations for Unlock 3.0.
According to the reports, the air corridor between India and other countries for limited air travel is to be established. Known as the “Air Bubble”, these corridors will be established in certain parameters such as checking how other countries are coping up with the pandemic, their security measures, etc.
The decision has been checked off with many consultations including major executives from various departments. After receiving several requests on responding to reopen the air travel routes, the Ministry of Home Affairs (MHA) along with the Ministry of Civil Aviation (MoCA).
The bi-decision, from the MHA and the MoCA, is aimed to bring back the Indian citizens who are present on international grounds and are unable to reach their native origin. And on this note, the MHA has made it clear that the service is unavailable for the local population to travel on a tourist visa.
According to MHA, between July 22- August 31, Air India, India’s largest air travel company, will be operating 30 flights a week to the US (New York, Chicago, Washington, New Jersey, and San Francisco), 4 flights a week to Germany (Frankfurt) and 3 flights a week to France (Paris).
Major airlines such as Air India, United Airlines, Air France, and Lufthansa have stepped up to operate hundreds of flights between India and the US, France, and Germany in this period. As these decisions are sealed, air corridors with Canada, the UK, and European and Gulf countries are also to be established soon.
Here is the repatriation international flight schedule released by Air India for July 30:
Air India repatriation schedule for July 30: Ex-India to foreign stations (in local time)
AI 1917: HYDERABAD 8:00 to DAMMAM 9:50
AI 0913: DELHI 10:00 to DAMMAM 11:45
AI 0991: DELHI 17:00 to JEDDAH 20:00
AI 1909: MUMBAI 22:00 to JEDDAH 0:35
Air India repatriation schedule for July 30: Ex-foreign stations to India (in local time)
AI 1918: DAMMAM 10:50 to HYDERABAD 17:25
AI 0914: DAMMAM 12:45 to LUCKNOW 19:35
AI 1922: JEDDAH 21:00 to DELHI 4:35
Air India Express repatriation schedule for July 30: Ex-foreign stations to India (in local time)
IX 1816: Abu Dhabi 13:20 to Bengaluru 18:55
IX 1744: Dubai 10:05 to Kannur 15:30
IX 1274: Sharjah 20:00 to Mumbai 00:30 (next day)
IX 1627: Kuala Lumpur 19:30 to Coimbatore 21:10
IX 1452: Abu Dhabi 16:25 to Kochi 22:00
IX 1142: Sharjah 10:30 to Jaipur 15:15
IX 1676: Sharjah 14:00 to Chennai 19:30
IX 1434: Dubai 17:10 to Kochi 22:45
IX 1540: Dubai 12:20 to Thiruvananthapuram 18:00
IX 1554: Muscat 16:35 to Thiruvananthapuram 21:55
Air India Express repatriation schedule for July 30: Ex-India to foreign stations (in local time)
IX 1815: Mangaluru 10:00 to Abu Dhabi 12:20
IX 1743: Kannur 6:40 to Dubai 9:05
IX 1273: Mumbai 17:15 to Sharjah 19:00
IX 1624: Tiruchirappalli 12:20 to Kuala Lumpur 18:45
IX 1419: Kochi 12:40 to Abu Dhabi 15:25
IX 1141: Delhi 7:25 to Sharjah 9:30
IX 1675: Chennai 10:25 to Sharjah 13:00
IX 1435: Kochi 13:30 to Dubai 16:10
IX 1539: Thiruvananthapuram 8:40 to Dubai 11:20
IX 1549: Thiruvananthapuram 13:20 to Muscat 15:35
Meanwhile, the continuity of international air travel is yet to be announced. Hardeep Singh Puri, Civil Aviation Minister of India and Ministry of Housing and Urban Affairs, clarified that international routes will be continued once domestic capacity approaches between 50-55% of pre-COVID levels.