India Extends Ban On International Flights Till July 31st; Only Cargo Operations Allowed

The aviation regulator said that international scheduled flights on selected routes may be permitted on a case to case basis.

(File Photo/ Getty)

New Delhi: As the nation entered the 'Unlock 2' phase, the civil aviation ministry has extended the ban on operation of international flights till July 31st. The civil aviation regulator DGCA said the ban on all international flights has been extended till July 31 and only cargo and flights approved by the DGCA will be allowed. "However, international scheduled flights may be allowed on select routes by the competent authority on case to case basis," the Directorate General of Civil Aviation said. The DGCA on June 26 said international passenger flights will be banned till July 15, which has now been extended till the end of the month.

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— DGCA (@DGCAIndia) July 3, 2020

The decision comes even as capacity on domestic routes has been increased to 45% from the earlier 33%. On Thursday, chairman of Airports Authority of India (AAI) had said India is in talks with the US and Canada and the countries in European and Gulf regions on establishing individual bilateral bubbles which will allow airlines of each country in the pact to operate international flights. “I am sure there would be a positive outcome of the talks with the US, Canada and with the Gulf countries and the negotiations are going on,” Arvind Singh had said yesterday. ALSO READ|India To Create 'Green Corridor' To Allow International Flights From US & Europe; 'Travel Bubble' Likely To Ease Curbs Aviation minister Hardeep Puri had on June 20 said the government will start thinking on the resumption of international passenger flights in mid-July when it expects the domestic air traffic to reach 50-55% of the levels before the coronavirus. The minister had also said that resumption of international flights will also depend on demand and other countries being open to receiving flights amid the Covid-19 pandemic. International flight movement in countries such as the United States, United Kingdom, Australia, Germany, China, Singapore, and the United Arab Emirates now varies between 3% and 18% of their earlier flight capacity, the minister had said. Giving details the minister said, entry is conditional in the US, UK, France, China, UAE, and Singapore. “You cannot have normal civil aviation operations under such conditions,” he had said. Scheduled international passenger flights have remained suspended in India since March 23 due to the coronavirus pandemic. The country resumed scheduled domestic passenger flights on May 25, after a gap of two months since the coronavirus lockdown was first announced in late March.