The Indian government said the decision to resume scheduled commercial international passenger services to and from India comes in recognition of the increased vaccination coverage across the globe and after consultation with stakeholders.
Highlights:
- India will resume regular international flights from 27 March
- Currently, flights to and from India were being operated under ‘air bubble’ arrangements with around 40 other countries
- According to the Ministry of Civil Aviation, international operations must follow strict health guidelines
The country's Directorate General of Civil Aviation (DGCA) had suspended operations of scheduled international commercial passenger services to and from India with effect from 23 March 2020 in order to prevent the spread of coronavirus. The plan to resume regular flights on December 25, 2021, was shelved because of Omicron.
"The suspension of scheduled commercial international passenger services to/from India, thus, stands extended only up to 2359 hrs IST on 26.03.2022, and air bubble arrangements shall accordingly be extended to this extent only,” the said.
India's air bubble agreements with major travel destinations including Australia had kept travellers and the diaspora connected to the country during the pandemic through limited options.
Passengers coming out of the Indira Gandhi International airport in New Delhi, India. Source: AAP Image/EPA/RAJAT GUPTA
The statement noted that international operations shall be subject to strict adherence to the current for international travel.
The move has been welcomed by industry players and the local community.
Flight Centre spokesperson Haydn Long told SBS Hindi, “This is very welcome news. There has been strong interest in flights to India since borders started to reopen and this gives people some certainty.”
“Australia has a fairly large Indian community. People are obviously very keen to re-connect with family and friends,” he said.
A Flight Centre store in Brisbane. Source: AAP Image/Glenn Hunt
Delhi is one of the most popular destinations in terms of bookings on the Flight Centre website in Australia, the spokesperson said.
“Since the start of February, Delhi is actually one of the most popular locations [fourth] in terms of bookings on our website in Australia. With this certainty around timeframes for reopening, bookings and interest are likely to increase,” he said.
“We expect there will be very strong interest initially from people looking to reconnect with those friends and family members that they haven't been able to see, but also from holidaymakers," he added.
Melbourne-based Neha Sharma has been planning to visit India for a while with her family and has tentatively booked her tickets for this month-end.
"My last visit to India was in October 2019, and our parents have not yet seen my first child who was born a year ago," she shared.
"Lots of people are trying to go back to India to meet their family or for work. With India lifting the ban on flights, we will have more options to choose from and it would make travel more convenient for many of us," Ms Sharma said.
Melbourne-based Neha Sharma, who is planning to visit India this month-end. Source: Supplied by Neha Sharma
"However, I am worried about skyrocketing airfares after travel is completely opened up, and growth in air traffic will also bring more chaos at the airports," she added.
