Seven more international flights expected with stranded Goans

Panaji: Seven more international repatriation flights may touch down at Goa International Airport in a few days time with permission to land at Dabolim being sought from the director general of civil aviation. These flights are aside from the four repatriation flights from Sri Lanka which will bring back seafarers.

“One repatriation flight operated by Sri Lankan Airlines will arrive at Goa International Airport on Sunday with 162 passengers. The flight, UL 1147, will land around 10.20pm,” sources said.

“We have seven more repatriation flights getting in line. The work is on and nothing is finalised as of now,” an official said.
On Saturday, four domestic flights landed at the Dabolim airport with 152 passengers and 234 passengers took flights out to Delhi, Mysore and Bengaluru. Two flights were operated between Goa and the national capital.
IndiGo operated two flights while Vistara and Alliance Air operated one flight to Delhi and Mysore respectively.
31/05/20 Times of India

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International flight operations to remain suspended till June 30: DGCA

New Delhi: Indian aviation regulator DGCA on Saturday said the suspension of scheduled international commercial passenger flights will continue till midnight on June 30, hours after the Home Ministry announced fresh guidelines pertaining to the countrywide lockdown to contain the coronavirus pandemic.

"It is once again reiterated that foreign airlines shall be suitably informed about the opening of their operations to or from India in due course," the circular issued by the Directorate General of Civil Aviation (DGCA) said.

Domestic passenger flight services resumed in the country from Monday after a hiatus of two months since the lockdown was announced on March 25, when all scheduled commercial passenger flights were suspended in India. International flights continue to remain suspended even now.

The Home Ministry on Saturday said 'Unlock-1' will be initiated in the country from June 8 under which the nationwide lockdown effectuated on March 25 will be relaxed to a great extent, including opening of shopping malls, restaurants and religious places, even as strict restrictions will remain in place till June 30 in the country's worst pandemic-hit areas.
31/05/20 PTI/New Indian Express

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Dubai hotelier arranges chartered flight to send his employees to Mangaluru

Mangaluru: A Dubai-based hotelier who hails from Mangaluru has arranged a chartered flight to help his employees return to Mangaluru, Udupi and nearby places. The SpiceJet flight carrying 177 passengers out of whom 105 are staff members of Fortune Group of Hotels is scheduled to fly from Ras Al Khaimah Airport to Mangaluru International Airport on June 1.

Praveen Shetty, chairman of Fortune Group of Hotels and president of Karnataka Non-Resident Indian Forum (KNRI) has seven hotels out of three three are non-operational now due to pandemic while another has been converted into a quarantine facility by the UAE authorities.

On April 13, KNRI had written to Dakshina Kannada MP Nalin Kumar Kateel to arrange repatriation flights from Dubai to Karnataka to help over one lakh Kannadigas stranded in UAE due to job loss, health issues and others. Though a few repatriation flights were operated to Bengaluru and Mangaluru from UAE, it mostly helped the terminally ill-patients and pregnant women.

Sources said Shetty decided to pay for the travel of his employees as no help was in sight from the Karnataka government. Meanwhile, the Government of India authorised private companies and community groups to allow private aircrafts and chartered operations on international sectors in view of pandemic, to come to the rescue of his employees.

Khaleej Times quoted him saying that he is sending 60 per cent of his hotel staff back home to India on paid leave.

The staff and their family members being repatriated on the chartered flight work for the four hotels that have been temporarily closed now. However, Shetty has not cancelled the visas of any of his staff and is willing to take them back once the pandemic subsidies.
31/05/20 Vincent D'Souza/New Indian Express

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55 Malayali nurses to fly to Ireland from Kochi amid COVID-19 crisis

Tiruvananthapuram: Nurses from Kerala have always been in great demand world over. Now during COVID-19, more than 55 nurses from the state are flying to New Delhi from Kochi on Sunday evening and the following morning, they will be airborne to Ireland in Air India's special flight as part of Vande Bharat mission.

Thirty-year-old Teena Mathew was supposed to fly to Ireland on April 9. With Irish visa valid for only three months, Teena was in panic mode wondering when she would be able to fly. But when she came to know of Air India’s Vande Bharat mission to Ireland, she immediately changed her tickets to Monday. Teena has got a job offer from a private nursing home with the help of her sister-in-law, Soumya Mathew, who is working with the Health Service Executive of Ireland.
"After a long wait, now things are falling into a groove. I will be taking the Indigo flight from Kochi on Sunday evening to New Delhi. On Monday morning, I will board Air India’s Vande Bharat mission flight to Ireland which is going for the evacuation of stranded Indians there," said Teena who has over five years of experience as a nurse.
She said that Air India’s special flight will be carrying several stranded Malayali nurses from Kerala to Ireland who couldn’t fly back with airline services coming to a halt due to the lockdown.
31/05/20 Cynthia Chandran/New Indian Express

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Repatriation flights reach Kochi

Kochi: Two repatriation flights reached Kochi on Saturday, each from Dubai and Abu Dhabi. The Air India Express flight (IX 1434) landed at Cochin International Airport Ltd (Cial) at 5:43pm with 181 passengers including four infants. The second flight IX 1452 operated by Air India Express from Abu Dhabi landed at 7:32pm with 181 passengers.
Out of these, two passengers, who were found symptomatic were sent to the isolation ward of Ernakulam medical college. Another Air India Express flight (IX 1476) from Doha too landed at Cial at 9:47pm with 185 passengers.

On Sunday there are special chartered flights from Nigeria, besides the services already announced in Vande Bharath Mission. M/S Air Peace flight is scheduled to land at Cial at 08:30 with 300 pax. With the ministry’s endorsement of carrying out chartered operation in international sector comes into effect, more airlines are gearing up to start evacuation flghts. Also, a flight operated by Air India Express from Dubai is scheduled to land at 5:25pm.

Meanwhile, Cial reported 18 domestic operations on Saturday. The airport endorsed nine arrivals and nine departures in the domestic sector on Saturday; of that 6 arrivals and 7 departure services were operated till 5:49pm with 579 inbound and 449 outbound passengers. Six arrivals and six departures were cancelled.
31/05/30 Times of India

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Air India flight brings back 137 Odias stranded in Chicago

Bhubaneswar: An Air India flight carrying 137 stranded Odias from Chicago arrived here at Biju Patnaik International Airport on Saturday morning.
The special flight came via Delhi, where passengers were shifted to another aircraft and brought here. Airport officials said the flight landed here at 4.30am and the air traffic control was intimated about the schedule.
An airport officer said the crew of six members flew back to Delhi with the empty aircraft after the passengers de-boarded.

The state government coordinated with the airport personnel on following the protocol of mandatory health screening and ensuring home and institutional quarantine as per the norms.

The government had said people from the rural areas will be sent to the quarantine centres, while those from the urban areas will have to follow home-isolation norms.

Sources in the Bhubaneswar Municipal Corporation (BMC) said those who stay under the BMC jurisdiction would remain under home quarantine. A BMC official said the respective district administrations took their passengers on separate buses.
Nearly 500 Odias, who were stranded in Dubai, Kuala Lumpur and Chicago, have been brought back here on special flights.
31/05/20 Times of India

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Vande Bharat: Air India announces more flights to evacuate Indians

New Delhi: Air India on Friday announced additional flights between June 4 and 6 to bring back Indians stranded abroad amid the coronavirus pandemic.

The flights will evacuate Indians from the US, UK, Germany, South Korea, New Zealand, and Sweden.

"Additional flights announced by @airindiain under Mission Vande Bharat. Delhi to Auckland on June 4. Delhi to Chicago & Stockholm on June 5. Delhi to New York, Frankfurt & Seoul on June 6. Mumbai to London & Newark on June 6," Union Minister for Civil Aviation Hardeep Singh Puri tweeted.

He said that bookings for the flights would start from 11 am on May 30.
29/05/20 IANS/Outlook

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Indian national carrier to fly stranded Kenyans home

Jaipur: The Indian national carrier will on June 5 fly into Nairobi more stranded Kenyans in an arrangement where passengers will meet own cost.

The details emerged Saturday as the Kenyan High Commission in New Delhi indicated up to 300 Kenyans had registered for the repatriation flight offered by the Indian government as it comes to rescue her nationals stuck in Kenya.

The Nation learnt that Kenyans will be  charged Sh148,512 each for a business class ticket while the cost of an economy class ticket will go for Sh65,711.

Yet by Saturday evening, the Airline had closed the online till for business tickets, an indication it had been fully booked. 
30/05/20 Daily Nation

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First ever mango export from Varanasi

Lucknow: In the first ever export of mango from Varanasi region, three tonnes of Langda and Chausa variety of the fruit was sent to Dubai.

On Friday, the mango was packed at the Mango pack house, Rehman Kheda, Lucknow and sent to IGIA from Lucknow airport. It will further be sent to Dubai from IGIA on an Air India flight.

The consignment contained 1.5 tonnes each of Langda and Chausa.

The packing, phytosanitary certification and custom clearance was done in APEDA-approved Mango Pack house in Lucknow.
29/05/20 Neha Shukla/Times of India

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1,343 natives of Rajasthan arrived at Jaipur airport from abroad in 11 flights till Friday

Jaipur: In total, 1,343 natives of Rajasthan have arrived at Jaipur airport in 11 flights till Friday evening under the Centre''s mega evacuation mission amid the coronavirus-forced lockdown, an official said.
The people who arrived here on Friday under the Vande Bharat Mission include 98 from Almaty, 180 from Dubai, while 150 passengers will arrive from Kuwait later in the night, Additional Chief Secretary Industries Subodh Agarwal said.
He said those returning from abroad all the migrants from abroad are being sent to institutional quarantine for seven days followed by another week of home quarantine.
29/05/20 PTI/Outlook

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13 Special flights to bring home 2,000 Indian nationals stranded in Gulf countries today; Air India to fly back 150 Indians from Sri Lanka

13 flights from the gulf region to India are scheduled today as part of the Vande Bharat Mission. The flights will bring back stranded Indians to various parts of India.

AIR correspondent reports, Vande Bharat Mission continues to touch the lives of various distressed and stranded Indians abroad.

13 flights have been scheduled from the Gulf countries to India , more than half of which are from the UAE.

There are six flights from Dubai to Jaipur , Kochi, Kannur, Hyderabad , Kozhikode and Thiruvananthapuram.

Another two flights are scheduled from Abu Dhabi to Kozhikode and Thiruvananthapuram.

For Jaipur it is the first flight from UAE under the Vande Bharat Mission. From Saudi Arabia , there is a flight Srinagar and Kozhikode.  This is also the first flight to Srinagar from the Kingdom.

Kuwait has two flights to Ahmedabad and Kozhikode. Muscat has one flight to Kochi and Doha has one flight to Kannur.

As part of Vande Bharat Mission, an Air India flight will bring back around 150 Indian nationals from Colombo in Sri Lanka today. This is the first repatriation flight under the mission from the island nation.

AIR correspondent reports, Passengers have started reaching Colombo airport from where Air India flight will take off to Mumbai followed by Bhubaneswar and Kolkata.

All safety precautions are being taken at the  airport and medical screening will be carried out for passengers before their boarding.

More flights are expected from Colombo in next phase while INS Jalashwa of Indian navy will sail from Colombo port carrying around 700 Indian nationals to Tuticorin on Monday.

This will be the first voyage of navy ship from Sri Lanka, as part of its Samudrasetu mission. There are around 1700 Indian nationals registered with Indian high commission for evacuation due to COVID crisis and have been waiting for returning back home.
29/05/20 All India Radio

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147 Indians flown to Jaipur from Kazakhstan

Jaipur: A third flight from Kazakhstan carrying 147 passengers on board arrived in Jaipur on Thursday under the Centre''s mega evacuation mission amid the coronavirus-forced lockdown, an official said.
As many as 618 Rajasthan natives have reached Jaipur in six flights so far under the Vande Bharat Mission, an official said Thursday.

So far three flights have arrived from Kazakhstan, Rajasthan Additional Chief Secretary Subodh Agarwal said.

He said, "158 expatriates are arriving in Rajasthan in a second Air India flight today, while 150 are coming from Kuwait and 143 passengers will be returning to Jaipur from Ukraine."

He said that the returnees will be kept in institutional quarantine for seven days followed by home quarantine for a week.
28/05/20 PTI/Outlook

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Air travel in India and the US: What has changed?

New Delhi: Air travel is one aspect that has changed due to the coronavirus pandemic. As thousands gather in airports and hundreds cluster on board flights, guidelines have been altered in an attempt to contain the spread of the disease while allowing people to migrate.

Air travel was possibly the biggest mode of transmission for Covid-19, which originated in China’s Wuhan and spread across the globe within three months. Take New York or Mumbai, for instance. These cities were hit hard as they host some of the busiest international airports.
However, while some countries shut down air services, others continued to operate despite the risks. India stopped air travel on March 25 and partially reopened the domestic aviation sector two months later on May 25. The US, which never fully halted operations, left it to airlines to impose norms or follow local restrictions, while only issuing some advisories.

While India is yet to allow international flights to operate, the US has, so far, banned travellers from few countries, including Iran, China, the European Schengen Area, the UK, Ireland and Brazil.

Further, the Indian government left it to states to decide quarantine guidelines for travellers landing at their airports. In the US, on the other hand, there are no norms except for international passengers, who are expected to voluntarily stay at home for 14 days and monitor their own health.
28/05/20 Indian Express

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Air India flight with 136 passengers on board departs from Moscow

Air India repatriation flight with 136 passengers on board left from Domodedovo Airport, according to Indian Embassy in Russia.

"Happy Indian citizens returning home!! @airindiain flight AI-1946 left from Domodedovo Airport with 136 passengers, including 33 females from Moscow to Delhi, including stranded labourers with full support of Domodedovo Airport and immigration," the Embassy said in a tweet.
Meanwhile, Consulate General of India, Dubai informed that there are four flights to Kochi, Kannur, Kozhikode and Trivandrum from Dubai today.

"Today we have four flights to Kochi, Kannur, Kozhikode and Trivandrum from Dubai carrying around 725 passengers. Consulate ensuring that no seat remains vacant and full capacity utilised. Request people to cooperate #VandeBharat," the Consulate General said in a tweet.

The central government launched the first phase of the Vande Bharat Mission on May 7 to evacuate Indians stranded abroad due to coronavirus induced lockdown. The second phase started on May 16.
26/05/20 Catch News

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85t int’l cargo lifted from Trichy in May

Trichy: Despite the lockdown, the cargo terminal continues to handle tonnes of perishables to Singapore. Spice Jet flight took off from Trichy airport to Singapore with 15 tonnes of vegetables, fruits, flowers and banana leaves late on Monday. With that, the terminal had handled 85 tonnes of international cargo in May.

Spice Xpress (Spice Jet) operated an all-cargo flight (Number SG-7190/7191 of B737/800) on Bangalore-Trichy–Singapore sector on Tuesday night. “The carrier was a passenger flight lifted the cargo in hatrack, cabin and also in its belly. The flight transported 12 export perishable cargo shipments consisting of vegetables, fruits, flowers and leaves in 1,762 packages, weighing 14.94 tonnes and one export shipment of general cargo (mask) in 10 packages weighing 264kg to Singapore,” a senior official at the airport said.
This was the fifth cargo flight operated by Spice Jet from Trichy during the Covid-19 lockdown period to Singapore. So far the carrier had lifted 72 tonnes of perishables to Singapore in May. This apart, IndiGo had lifted 10 tonnes of cargo from Trichy International Airport.
27/05/20 D Vincent Arockiaraj/Times of India

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UAE-India repatriation: 800 pregnant women flown home so far

Abu Dhabi: More than 800 pregnant women have already been repatriated from the UAE to India as part of the Vande Bharat Mission.

"We know there are thousands waiting but it is tough task for us to prioritise them. We have so far sent more than 800 pregnant women in advanced stage pregnancy and 850 plus patients back to India," the Consulate-General of India in Dubai said as the second phase of the UAE mission started on Tuesday.

Pregnant women and those with medical emergencies have always been on the priority list of passengers for repatriation. On May 16, during the first phase, a record 108 pregnant women and 148 people with medical emergencies were flown back on just three flights.

And now, with the second phase having additional flights, there is more hope for stranded Indians.

A total of 81 flights operated by Air India and subsidiary Air Indian Express will repatriate around 14,000 Indians till June 8.
27/05/20 Ashwani Kumar/Khaleej Times

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Air France KLM Martinair Cargo ups frequency to Mumbai

Following the disruption of Covid-19 and lockdowns, Air France KLM Martinair Cargo has increased its freight operations and now serves 67 long-haul destinations including Mumbai in India.

The cargo operator now offers four frequency to Mumbai with three on KLM from Amsterdam Schiphol Airport (AMS) on day 2, 4 & 6 and one on Air France from Paris Charles de Gaulle Airport (CDG) on day 5.

The carrier offers a range of transport options such as belly capacity on passenger flights, cargo-only flights on passenger aircraft, cargo-in-cabin on passenger aircraft, regular full-freighter flights and charter options on passenger aircraft and full freighters.

“We’ve resumed flights between Singapore and Paris Charles de Gaulle, and between Accra and AMS. This week, we’ll be adding Bangkok, Panama City and St Martin to the route network operating out of CDG,” says the release.

Flight frequencies have also been increased for a large number of other destinations. From Paris Charles de Gaulle to New York, Mexico City, Rio de Janeiro, Conakry, Nouakchott, Bangui, Abidjan, Nairobi, Shanghai and Tokyo. And from Amsterdam Schiphol to New York, Los Angeles, Houston, Toronto, Buenos Aires, Dubai, Mumbai, Bangkok, Singapore, Kuala Lumpur, Manilla, Osaka and Tokyo.
27/05/20 ITLN

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Why only one flight to TN so far, ask desperate Tamils stranded in the UK

Chennai: Hundreds of people from Tamil Nadu stranded in the United Kingdom for over two months now are desperately seeking the government's intervention for flights to get back home. They say while a few flights have been organised so far to states like Maharashtra, Andhra Pradesh and Delhi, only one has been arranged to Tamil Nadu.

Most of those stranded are students and people who went there for medical treatment or on business, apart from tourists.
Talking to The New Indian Express over phone, a 22-year-old from Warwick said, "My father, residing at Madurai, is suffering from heart disease and doctors said he only has a few months to live. My mother is feeling helpless and I am stuck here. We have tried a lot of ways to get back but nothing seems to work."

More than 300 Tamils stranded in the UK are trying to get back. They have written numerous petitions and even protested outside the Indian High Commission in London but there has been no response. Only one flight has departed from the UK to Tamil Nadu with 300 passengers.

"I am a PhD student and my college shut down long ago. We only have online classes now and the university said we could go back home. I am struggling for money to stay here. Also, when the UK witnessed a sharp spike in cases, all other countries sent flights to evacuate their nationals. Our country also sent, but nothing from Tamil Nadu. We are ready to fly to another state in India also and quarantine there. We just want to get back home," said Shyamala Surendran currently residing in Bristol.
Similarly, 30-year-old Shobana Rajesh moved to London in February to work in an IT company and had thought her family too can move there in a few months. But now, she has been stranded there for three months now. "I have children aged two and four. It is heartbreaking when they make video calls asking me to recite stories and poems. I thought we would shift here for a better life, but it has only become miserable forcing us further into debt," Shobana said as she broke into tears.
27/05/20 KV Navya/New Indian Express

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Over 300 Indians fly home on board special Air India flight from New York

New York: Over 300 Indian nationals, who were stuck in the US due to the coronavirusinduced global travel restrictions, have flown home on board the fourth special flight from New York under the Vande Bharat Mission.
The Air India flight from J F K International Airport to Bengaluru flew on May 25 and had 329 passengers, including two infants, according to officials.
India's Consul General in New York Sandeep Chakravorty and Deputy Consul General
Shatrughna Sinha were at the airport to supervise the process.
The second phase of non-scheduled commercial flights of Air India from the US to various
cities in India is underway from May 19 to May 29.
In the first phase, Air India operated non-scheduled commercial flights from the US to various Indian cities from May 9 to May 15.
Under the second phase, two flights will fly from New York to Delhi, Chandigarh and Bengaluru; two from San Francisco to Bengaluru, Hyderabad, Kochi and Ahmedabad; one from Washington to Bengaluru and Ahmedabad and two from Chicago to Delhi, Bhubaneshwar, Ahmedabad and Hyderabad.
Since the number of seats would be limited, passengers with compelling cases such as those facing medical emergencies or requiring return due to bereavement in the family, students, pregnant women, elderly or those facing expiry of visas will be given priority. They are identified through an electronic random selection method.
The travellers will be required to undergo a medical screening before boarding the flight and only asymptomatic passengers will be allowed. Passengers will be medically screened and would have to download the Arogya Setu app once they arrive in India.
26/05/20 PTI/Economic Times

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Special KLM flight brings home 276 Indians from Netherlands

The Hague: As many as 276 Indians stranded in the Netherland due to the coronavirus-induced global travel restrictions have returned home on board a special KLM flight as part of the ''Vande Bharat Mission'', an official said on Wednesday.

Of the total passengers, who reached Mumbai on Tuesday, 107 of them were flown to the Netherlands from other countries such as 52 from Mexico, 47 from Peru and eight from Portugal, the official said in a statement.

Around 276 Indian nationals stranded in the Netherlands were successfully evacuated on Tuesday by a special KLM flight, the Indian Embassy here said in a statement.

India’s Ambassador to the Netherlands Venu Rajamony personally saw off the passengers as they boarded the aircraft at Amsterdam Schiphol airport.

KLM Royal Dutch Airlines is the flag carrier of the Netherlands.

“There were tears of joy and heartfelt gratitude as the individuals profusely thanked the Indian Embassy for coming to their aid in their time of distress,” the Indian mission said in the statement.

Earlier in March, the embassy played a major role in the evacuation of 117 Indian nationals stranded at Schiphol airport when the travel ban on international commercial passenger flights came into force.

“Since then the embassy has assisted the remaining stranded Indians by providing accommodation and meals during the course of the extended travel ban and has also guided those with a medical condition to healthcare support,” the statement said.
There are around 1,000 Indians who are to be repatriated in the ensuing weeks.

On June 8, another batch of stranded Indians will be sent home by a special Air India flight from Amsterdam to New Delhi as part of the second leg of the ‘Vande Bharat Mission, it said.
27/05/20 PTI/Outlook

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Vande Bharat Mission - No return flights for Gulf Kannadigas in third phase

Bengaluru: After easing the lockdown rules, the central government has decided to bring NRI Indians stranded in other countries to their homeland in the third phase of 'Vande Bharat Mission'. Gulf Kannadigas who have been waiting for an opportunity to come back for various reasons are worried as there are no listed flights to bring Kannadigas back to their state in the third phase.
The third phase list in which flights are being operated from May 26 to June 4, has flights from Gulf countries like Dubai, Qatar, Saudi Arabia, Kuwait, Abu Dhabi, Bahrain and Muscat to different Indian states. But none of these flights have Mangaluru or Bengaluru as their destinations. There are a number of flights to Kannur.
Taking into account the plight of Kannadigas stuck in the Gulf region, office bearers of certain Kannada organizations in those countries have got in touch with union ministers D V Sadananda Gowda and Suresh Angadi, who represent Karnataka, and requested them to mitigate the hardships of these people. Both the ministers have written to the civil aviation minister, urging him to facilitate the return of Kannadigas in the Gulf at the earliest.
27/05/20 daijiworld

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Pakistan Army claims to shoot down Indian 'spying quadcopter' along LoC

Islamabad: The Pakistan Army claimed on Wednesday that it shot down an Indian "spying quadcopter" for allegedly violating the airspace along the Line of Control.
The incident happened in Rakhchikri Sector of the LoC, according to military spokesman Major General Babar Iftikhar.
He said that the "Indian spying quadcopter" had intruded 650 metres on Pakistan's side of the LoC when it was brought down.
India has dismissed previous such claims by the Pakistan Army.
In April, the Pakistan Army claimed to have shot down an Indian drone.
The ties between the two nations strained following the Balakot strike when the Indian Air Force jets bombed a Jaish-e-Mohammed training camp in Pakistan on February 26 last year to avenge the killing of 40 Central Reserve Police Force personnel in the Pulwama terror attack on February 14. Pakistan retaliated on February 27 by attempting to target Indian military installations.
27/05/20 PTI/Economic Times

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SpiceJet begins cargo operations to Africa;Adds South Korea to its international network

Kolkata: SpiceJet has added Sudan and South Korea to its international cargo network. The airline operated its maiden freighter flights to both these destinations carrying pharma and cargo supplies. SpiceJet deployed its Boeing 737 freighter aircraft to carry 16 tons of cargo supplies to Khartoum in Sudan via Ras Al-Khaimah and another 16 tons of cargo from Delhi to Incheon in South Korea via Kolkata.
 Ajay Singh, Chairman & Managing Director, SpiceJet, said, “Our maiden cargo flight to Sudan marks a major milestone for SpiceJet. We will be actively using Ras Al-Khaimah airport as a hub for our cargo operations to Africa and CIS countries in the times to come. With our first cargo flight to Incheon in South Korea we have made a significant addition to our cargo network in East Asia.”
 SpiceJet has transported 10,600 tons of cargo on 1620 flights since the nation-wide lockdown began. SpiceJet has operated special cargo flights to and from Cebu, Huangzhou, Tashkent, Baghdad, Cambodia, Guangzhou, Abu Dhabi, Kuwait, Singapore, Ho Chi Minh, Hong Kong, Shanghai, Bangkok, Colombo, Dubai, Kabul, Myanmar, Sharjah, Male, Kuala Lumpur, Ukraine and a host of other places.
 SpiceJet operated the country’s first cargo-on-seat flight on April 7 carrying vital supplies in passenger cabin & belly space. Since then, the airline has been regularly deploying its B737 and Q400 passenger aircraft to carry cargo in the passenger cabin. SpiceXpress, SpiceJet’s dedicated cargo arm, has been regularly transporting surgical supplies, sanitizers, face masks, coronavirus rapid test kits, IR thermometers etc. and providing doorstep deliveries of essential supplies, medicines and medical equipment to various cities in India.
26/05/20 UNI

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Fiji citizens stranded in India return home

The Australian Government facilitated the uplift of 64 Fijians from India to Sydney, said the acting permanent secretary for Foreign Affairs, Yogesh Karan.

An Air India flight was arranged by the Australian Government to bring Australians home last week.

“The Australians gave us seats from their quota on that flight so they helped us in getting enough seats,” said Mr Karan.

He said the Fiji High Commission in New Delhi oversaw the arrangement with the Australian High Commission there.

Mr Karan said 135 Fijians were in India, of which 64 returned home last week.

“There are some who are there still undergoing medical treatment or will undergo medical treatment soon.

“We have another flight coming on June 4 and we will see who else wants to come back and we will make arrangements,” said Mr Karan.
26/05/20 Fiji Times

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India begins repatriation from Kazakhstan; 7 flights to bring back thousands of students

India has begun repatriation of its citizens from Kazakhstan, with first flight leaving on Tuesday. With 3400 Indians registered for repatriation, a thousand are expected back in the first phase which will see flights daily from the central Asian country to India.

India's ambassador to Kazakhstan Prabhat Kumar, speaking to WION from Kazakhstan said, "We are starting evacuation from Kazakhstan. Today is the first flight from Karaganda. We have 7 flights from Karaganda, Almaty, Nur Sultan. From 26th May till 1st, every day one flight which will be taking a thousand people to India. We have registered around 3400 people for evacuation, the rest of the people will be covered in the next phase."

Overall, 3 Flights from Karaganda, 2 flights from Nur Sultan, 2 from Almaty will be coming in next week.

Prabhat Kumar thanked "ministry of external affairs, ministry of foreign affairs of Kazakhstan, airport authorities of Karaganda, Almaty, Nur Sultan for supporting the evacuation" and expressed his appreciation for "Indian home & health & civil aviation ministry and Air India specially for making this possible."


Most of the passengers are students with New Delhi requesting for chartered flights to take care of the workers. Several Indian workers are working to build the mega Abu Dhabi plaza in Capital Nur Sultan.

The plaza consists of offices, residential places and once completed will be the tallest building in the whole of Central Asia.
26/05/20 Wion

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More private airlines ready to jump on evacuation bandwagon to bring Keralites home

Even as COVID-19 cases have started climbing steadily in the state after the return of people from outside Kerala, more private airlines are ready to jump on the evacuation bandwagon.

After Air India and its subsidiary Air India Express and private airline Indigo, now Spicejet, Vistara and GoAir have received permission to operate evacuation flights to Kerala from foreign countries, chiefly from West Asia. Though Air India Express and Indigo have announced that they would operate 38 and 97 services respectively to Kerala from May 26 to June 13, other private airlines are yet to announce their decisions.

There has been intense lobbying for hiking the airfare for evacuation as private airlines have been saying that they get only 10 per cent extra of the operational revenue if services are operated as per the present cost cap of Rs 13k. Only one-sided traffic is allowed which is just sufficient to meet the operational expense of the aircraft.

According to sources, these private airlines are likely to be allowed to slap handling and processing charges which is expected to give them Rs 2,000 more per passenger. A formal decision on airfare of private airlines along with other details would be announced by the Ministry of Civil Aviation in a couple of days.

A senior Air India officer said allowing private airlines would certainly bring more people into the state in a short period and more cargo operations would be carried out as the DGCA has already given permission to airlines to start cargo operations in passenger aircraft in approved stowage locations such as closets and overhead bins of the passenger compartment, provided the load limitations are met. But this would certainly bring more COVID-19 cases to the state.
26/05/20  Dhinesh Kallungal/New Indian Express

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Air India evacuates 115 stranded Indians from Israel

Ben-Gurion Airport (Tel Aviv): Some 115 Indians, including out of work and broke caregivers, students and pregnant women, were all smiles as they boarded an Air India flight here on Tuesday and left for India after being stranded in Israel for more than two months due to the COVID-19 lockdown.
The flight took off at 1 AM IST and also carried a Nepalese national Prabha Baskota, married to an Indian, and five Israeli diplomats posted in Delhi.
Out of the 121 passengers aboard flight AI 140, some 85 of them would take a connecting flight to Kochi on Tuesday from Delhi. Most of the Kochi passengers are caregivers who have wished to be quarantined close to their home.
"These are very challenging times and the Vande Bharat Mission flight to India is one of our many efforts to reach out to our community of students and caregivers here in Israel," India's ambassador to Israel Sanjeev Singla told at the airport.
"The Ministry of External Affairs, the Civil Aviation Ministry, the Home Ministry, the Israeli Foreign Ministry and the embassy have taken all possible steps to ensure that our nationals stranded and facing hardships for various reasons are able to return home", Singla said.
"The Ministry of External Affairs, the Civil Aviation Ministry, the Home Ministry, the Israeli Foreign Ministry and the embassy have taken all possible steps to ensure that our nationals stranded and facing hardships for various reasons are able to return home", Singla said.
The Indian government launched the ''Vande Bharat Mission'' on May 7 to bring back Indians stranded in various countries due to coronavirus-related restrictions.
26/05/20 PTI/Economic Times

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Distressed to get priority on Indian evacuation flights

aced with a growing demand from people stranded at home and abroad due to covid lockdown, India will now give priority to the distressed on hundreds of evacuation flights to and from over 50 nations.

As part of the Vande Bharat mission, its largest evacuation exercise, India’s national carrier Air India is running over 250 flights, including 14 to and from the US, to ferry its citizens home.

The Indian Ministry of Home Affairs has issued a new Standard Operating Protocol (SOP) for travel of Indian Nationals stranded abroad and for those stranded in India who wish to go back.

For travel of Indian Nationals stranded abroad, priority will be given to compelling cases in distress, including migrant workers and laborers who have been laid off, the ministry said.
Short term visa holders faced with expiry of visas, persons with medical emergency, pregnant women, elderly and those required to return to India due to death of family member, and students too would be given priority.

Such persons would have to register themselves with the Indian Missions in the country where they are stranded, along with necessary details as prescribed by the Ministry of External Affairs (MEA).
25/05/20 American Bazar Online

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SC allows AI to run int'l flights with middle seats filled for 10 days

New Delhi: The Supreme Court on Monday allowed Air India to keep the middle seats occupied while operating its non-scheduled flights to bring back Indians stranded abroad up to June 6 while observing that the government should be more worried about the health of citizens rather than the health of commercial airlines.
The top court said that after June 6, Air India will operate its non-scheduled flights in accordance with the interim order to be passed by the Bombay High Court. The Centre and Air India had moved the apex court challenging the interim order of the High Court by which it had asked the national carrier to operate its non-scheduled flights by keeping the middle seats vacant.
A bench of Chief Justice S A Bobde and Justices A S Bopana and Hrishikesh Roy, which took up the appeals filed urgently through video conferencing despite the holiday for Eid, remanded the matter back to the High Court with a request to pass an effective interim order after hearing all concerned on the date fixed by it, i.e. June 2, 2020, or soon thereafter.
"We are of the considered view that the petitioner - Air India should be allowed to operate the non-scheduled flights with the middle seats booking up to June 6, 2020. However, after that the Air India will operate non-scheduled flights in accordance with the interim order to be passed by the Bombay High Court thereafter," it said, according to news agency PTI.
The bench observed that authorities must consider the importance of maintaining social distancing as a shoulder to shoulder sitting is dangerous, due to the contagious pandemic. The bench said normally it is not inclined to interfere with the interim orders made by the courts below.

Solicitor General Tushar Mehta, appearing for Centre and Air India, said that due to the directions of the High Court a lot of "anxiety and difficulties" have arisen among the passengers who are stranded on foreign soil after they were issued tickets for travel.

"Moreover, in some cases, the travel plans of families who were travelling together have been disrupted because those in the families who had middle seats have to be offloaded and remain behind," the bench said while noting the submissions of Mehta, who said that passengers stranded abroad are facing difficulty due to want of proper shelter and money.
The bench said it would consider it necessary for the High Court to arrive at a prima facie finding regarding the safety and health of the passengers qua the COVID-19 virus, whether the flight is a scheduled flight or a non-scheduled flight.
"We make it clear that the Director-General of Civil Aviation is free to alter any norms he may consider necessary during the pendency of the matter in the interest of public health and safety of the passengers rather than of commercial considerations," the bench said in its order while disposing of the appeal.

During the hearing, Mehta referred to the March 23 circular and said that India had stopped all international flight operations due to spread of COVID-19 and it has now been superseded by the May 22 circular.

The bench told Mehta, You should be worried about the health of citizens, not about the health of commercial airlines.
25/05/20 Business Standard

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Keep middle seat vacant on repatriation flights: Bombay HC tells Air India and aviation authorities

Mumbai: Observing that the safety of passengers is paramount, the Bombay High Court has ordered Air India and the aviation authorities to ensure social distancing en route by keeping the middle seat on repatriation flights vacant. The HC said authorities cannot discriminate between international and domestic passengers, as the safety of all is paramount.

This comes after a bench of Justices Ramesh Dhanuka and Abhay Ahuja refused to accept the contention of the civil aviation ministry, which claimed that it could not keep one seat vacant between two passengers on international flights.

The bench was moved by Deven Kanani, a pilot with the Air India, who highlighted how social distancing went for a toss while stranded Indians were being brought back to India, under the recent Vande Bharat Mission.

Kanani, relied upon a March 23 circular issued by the Union government, which provided a series of conditions to be implemented to prevent spread of Covid-19 and outlined preventive measures. One such condition was to keep the seat between two passengers vacant.

Opposing the plea, Dr Abhinav Chandrachud, appearing for Air India, claimed the March 23 circular did not apply to international flights and was only applicable to domestic ones. He submitted that all precautions required to be taken to prevent the spread of Covid-19 were being taken while airlifting Indian passengers from abroad.

During the course of the hearing, Chandrachud further pointed out another circular issued on May 22, which he claimed superseded the March 23 notification. He said that the new circular specifically states, the measure of 'keeping one seat vacant' applies only to domestic flights, not to international ones.

Having considered the submissions, the bench said, "Prima facie, we are unable to accept the submission of Dr Chandrachud that social distancing measures which are provided by the said circular so as to prevent spread of Covid-19 would apply only to domestic operation and not to international."

The bench said if the contentions of Air India were accepted then the whole purpose of preventing spread of Covid-19 by prescribed measures would be defeated.

"Prima facie, it appears that the object behind the March 23 circular issued by the Union government is for the safety of the passengers and for protection of their health in this emergency situation created by the Covid-19 pandemic. In these circumstances, the circular cannot be interpreted to apply differently to passengers from abroad and domestic passengers. Paramount consideration is the health and safety of these passengers and to achieve the object that they are not infected by coronavirus when they undertake any such travel," the bench ruled.

The bench said that the March 23 circular did not provide any differentiation of the category of passengers.

"This would be required to be recognised as legitimate expectation and concomitant to the right to life guaranteed to the citizens who are undertaking such travel. Prima facie, we are in agreement with the petitioner (Pilot) that those passengers who are being lifted mainly from U.S.A and U.K. may be Covid-19 infected passengers. In our prima facie view, Air India has violated the March 23 circular by not keeping one seat between two seats empty while allocating seats," the judges held.

As far as the new circular is concerned, the bench noted that a cursory glance indicated it applied only to domestic operations, and not to international operations.

"We have already indicated our prima facie observations about the applicability of March 23 circular. We therefore, make it clear that the our directions (to keep one seat vacant) would remain with a rider that the March 23 circular, shall be read with the new notification," the bench ruled.
25/05/20 FreePressJournal

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Air India flight from Sydney to evacuate three Nepali nationals

Kathmandu: Air India flight, AI-301, from Sydney on Monday will bring three Nepali citizens, one of them will undergo bone marrow transplant at a Delhi hospital, informed sources from the Ministry of External Affairs told ANI.

The repatriation flight is expected to touch down in Delhi at 18:35 hours (IST), the sources added.

"The Embassy of Nepal in Australia had requested for this evacuation. It is a case of a bone marrow transplant. The patient, along with his brother (donor) and father (caretaker) will be taken directly to the BLK hospital in the national capital and they will be in quarantine at the hospital itself. All the three have COVID-19 negative certificates and fit to fly certificates, along with the local hospital's acceptance letter," they added.

At least 225 passengers, including two infants, are set to be flown back to India on this particular flight operated under the Government of India's 'Vande Bharat' Mission.

The flight is bounded for Ahmadabad will be carrying 11 passengers who will land in New Delhi, including the Nepali citizens.

Vande Bharat Mission initiated by Government of India to evacuate Indian Nationals from overseas has brought in more than 30,000 Indian Nationals back home amid worldwide lockdown to flatten the COVID-19 curve.
25/05/20 ANI/New Indian Express

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6 asymptomatic Vande Bharat flyers test Covid-19 +ve in Mumbai

Mumbai: Six passengers who arrived in the city on Vande Bharat Mission flights have tested Covid-19 positive, but all are asymptomatic.
BMC health officials asked them to continue their stay in the hotels where they were in institutional quarantine till they show symptoms that warrant hospitalisation or test negative.
"Since these persons are asymptomatic, they will be quarantined in the same hotel for the remaining days of the mandatory 14-day period and subsequently will be shifted to institutional or home isolation depending on their health condition," additional municipal commissioner Suresh Kakani said.

The first lot of stranded nationals who landed in the city on Air India repatriation flights on May 10 completed their 14-day mandatory institutional quarantine on Sunday and most of them were allowed to leave by the BMC with a stamp for another two weeks of home quarantine.

BMC officials did not say whether the people found positive were from the first flight or landed afterwards.
In the first week of the month, the global evacuation plan of the government began flying in 14,800 stranded citizens on 64 Air India flights from various countries. In a week, about 2,350 passengers arrived at the city airport and were thermal-screened on the premises before being taken on buses to the institutional quarantine facility of their choice. They were asked to stay there at their own expense for a 14-day period.

After the BMC amended rules last week, flyer are to undergo two weeks of home quarantine after two weeks of hotel quarantine, which will be completed only after they test negative for a swab test done between the seventh and twelfth day of of quarantine.
25/05/20 Vijay V Singh/Times of India

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India’s Consulate in Dubai warns against repatriation flights scams

Dubai: The Consulate General of India in Dubai warned Indian nationals in the United Arab Emirates of people running scams, collecting money and claiming to operate repatriation flights amid the coronavirus pandemic.

“It has come to our notice that certain people and travel agencies in UAE are contacting Indian nationals in the name of forthcoming chartered flights to various destinations in India and in some cases, alluring them to pay money in advance for airfare and quarantine charges in India,” the Consulate said on Sunday on its Twitter account.
The Consulate then advised all Indian nationals living in the UAE that Indian’s government “has not yet accorded approval for any such chartered flights as of now.”

It added: “A proposal of chartered flight to India, if any, for any designated purpose, will be approved by the government of India and routed through Consulate General of India, Dubai, during the current crisis of COVID-19 and till resumption of normal international civil aviation services between India and UAE.”

The Consulate warned: “All Indian nationals are advised to take note of the above and advised not to fall prey to any such people/agents on pretext of arranging chartered flights to certain destinations.”

Passenger flights in and out of the UAE were suspended on March 23 as part of the government’s efforts to contain the spread of the coronavirus.
25/05/20 Tuqa Khalid/Saudi Gazette

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Indian hackers take down Civil Aviation Authority website

Kathmandu: An Indian hacker, Ghost057-5P3C706, has taken down the website of Civil Aviation Authority of Nepal (CAAN)and placed an Indian flag along with a message on the home page.

The hacker’s message, posted on Sunday, read, “Just because we are silent and we don’t react doesn’t mean didn’t notice.
On Thursday, Indian hackers brought down Nepali government websites and posted their messages asking Nepal to back off following a dispute arising after the issuance of a new political map by Nepal. A government website operated by the Nepal National Library was hacked.

Thenafter, hackers from across both sides of the border have been engaging in a dual where government-owned sites are being owned by each side, with their peculiar message for the other country.

However, claiming of CAAN website has thrown everybody into alert as aviation authority’s official page may contain some very relevant data that may have been compromised.
24/05/20 Himalayan Times

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There will be no delay in supply of Rafale jets to India: French Ambassador

New Delhi: There will be no delay in delivery of 36 Rafale jets to India as the timeline finalised for the supply of the fighter jets will be strictly respected, French Ambassador Emmanuel Lenain has said.

India had signed an inter-governmental agreement with France in September 2016 for the procurement of 36 Rafale fighter jets at a cost of around Rs 58,000 crore.
"The contractual delivery schedule of the Rafale jets has been perfectly respected till now, and, in fact, a new aircraft was handed over to the Indian Air Force in end-April in France, in keeping with the contract," Lenain told PTI.

Defence Minister Rajnath Singh received the first Rafale jet at an airbase in France on October 8.

"We are helping the Indian Air Force in arranging for the ferry flight of their first four Rafales from France to India as soon as possible. So there's no reason today to speculate that the schedule will not be maintained," the envoy said.

France is reeling under swelling cases of coronavirus and has emerged as one of the worst-hit in Europe.

Over 1,45,000 people were infected by the virus while the death toll stood at 28,330. There were apprehensions that the delivery of Rafale jets could be delayed due to the pandemic.

However, Lenain asserted that the original timeline for delivery of the jets will be adhered to. The aircraft is capable of carrying a range of potent weapons.
24/05/20 PTI/New Indian Express

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Air India brings back 50 expectant mothers to their homeland from London

New Delhi: National Carrier Air India, which has been spearheading the mass repatriation of Indians under 'Vande Bharat Mission', brought 50 expecting mothers in one flight from London to Hyderabad earlier this month.
"We are operating repatriation flights from London to several cities under Vande Bharat Mission. We have been handling a large number of passengers daily but on May 11, it was a very special moment when Air India operated flight from London to Hyderabad with 50 expecting mothers on board," an Air India official based in London told ANI.Due to prevailing pandemic situation in London, the gynaecologists are not examining pregnant ladies through video call and not directly. This is something which compelled them to return to India and fear is also the concern.
Narrating the experience, an AI official based in London said that the national carrier handled around 11 flights so far from London to India. "I joined Air India long back but this is my first posting abroad and I can not explain to you my enriching experiences. People who are in London want to return to their home, their response was amazing. I am so proud to be part of Vande Bharat Mission under which Indians stranded abroad are being brought back to their homeland." AI official said. As per the guidelines, expectant mothers may travel up to (including) 27 weeks of their pregnancy. "Before booking Air India flights in the condition of pregnancy, the airline has a clear rule which is applied to all expecting mothers. This can be done only on the authority of the Chief Medical Officer of Air India and the passenger must be accompanied by a physician and an indemnity bond must be signed. This is normally facilitated in case of urgent/compassionate cases only." Air India rule said.
24/05/20 ANI/Times of India

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Air India flight brings back 133 Indians from Muscat to Bihar under Vande Bharat Mission

Patna: An Air India flight flew back 133 passengers from Muscat under the Vande Bharat Mission drive to bring back Indians stranded in other countries. The AI974 flight landed in Gaya from where 117 passengers were placed on paid quarantine in hotels.

According to Dileep Kumar, director of Bodhgaya airport, all those who belonged to Bihar have been quarantined in Bodh Gaya while 16 natives of Jharkhand were sent to their homes in a vehicle escorted by officials.
"All SOP norms were followed while landing. The passengers were screened and each of them was given a kit each of masks, hand sanitisers and a booklet with details on how to maintain social distancing and remain safe along with other valuable information," Kumar said., further adding that the 133 passengers included a child too.

"Two chartered flight operations are also expected on May 27 and 28 from Yangon and Dhaka with officials awaiting approval from the DGCA and the MEA," he said.
24/05/20 Rajesh Kumar Thakur/New Indian Express

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93 nationals arrive in Indore from London in Vande Bharat's special Air India flight

Bhopal: As many as 93 nationals arrived in Madhya Pradesh's Indore from London on Sunday morning in a special Air India flight which has been spearheading the government's ambitious 'Vande Bharat' mission to bring stranded citizens back home owing to the covid lockdown.

All passengers were examined for the virus by the authorities of the state health department at Devi Ahilyabai Holkar International Airport in Indore. Dr. Amit Malakar told ANI that after the checking procedures, arrangements were made for all passengers to send them to different cities, where they would remain in quarantine for 14 days. The passengers who belonged to Indore city itself have also been sent to quarantine centers.

The evacuations are being conducted under the second phase of 'Vande Bharat' mission which was initiated on May 16 and aims to bring stranded Indians from 40 different countries across the globe.
24/05/20 Times Now News.com

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Coronavirus: next wave of UAE repatriation flights to India to begin this week

A Central Industrial Security Force personnel wearing protective gear stands guard as he waits for Indian citizens flown home from Dubai by Air India flight to arrive at the Anna International Airport. AFP
Another wave of repatriation flights from the UAE to India is set to begin this week.

About 14,000 Indian citizens will board 81 special charters announced as part of the third phase of the massive operation.

The first flight will leave for New Delhi from Abu Dhabi on Tuesday.

The majority of the flights, more than 50 in total, are to Kerala. But there are a range of other destinations on the itinerary, including Punjab and Uttar Pradesh.

There has been a huge demand for the repatriation service, with a reported 350,000 Indians applying to their embassy for help to return home, according to embassy officials.
That is more than 10 per cent of the 3.4 million-strong Indian community in the UAE, which is the largest outside the country anywhere in the world.

India has been under lockdown since March 24, when the government shut down international and domestic flights and train services between states.

The country recently extended restrictions until May 31.

Indians tell of grief and cling to hope as they board flights home

Dozens of pregnant women flown home to India from Dubai

Travellers who have been able to return on special repatriation flights have been placed in 14-day quarantines in hotels.

Roughly 6,000 Indians have so far left the UAE since the evacuation programme began on May 7.
24/05/20 Gillian Duncan/National

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UAE-India repatriation: Workers relieved as new destinations for special flights open up

Abu Dhabi: The past few months have been tough, they said. For weeks, someone like Parimal Desai, who lost his job and wishes to return to Gujarat, would fervently check for updates on service to Ahmedabad.

When he realised there were more people like him, Desai formed a WhatsApp group, which soon had more than 125 stranded people from Gujarat.
He knocked on doors of missions and reached out to politicians in his state and New Delhi. Finally, his plea was heard, he said.
"I was so happy to see services to Ahmedabad from both Abu Dhabi and Dubai. This service will be a boon for people like me and the rest. I thank all local authorities, missions and the Indian government. We are all relieved," Desai said.
Ajay Singh, a blue-collar worker who has been waiting for a flight to Bihar, was delighted to learn about the service to Gaya from Dubai on June 1. "Hopefully, our company will help with repatriation," Singh said.

An ailing Santokh Singh is eager to be on a flight to Punjab and join his family. "I was discharged from a hospital on Saturday. I am wheelchair-bound but slowly recovering. I wish to leave on the next flight from Abu Dhabi to Amritsar on May 27. I am grateful that there is also a service to Chandigarh," the 68-year-old said. A service from Dubai to Chandigarh is scheduled on June 2.

Varun Kumar, now unemployed, is hopeful of returning home to Uttar Pradesh. "We have one flight to Lucknow from Dubai. We appeal for more flights. We are happy that there are so many services to Kerala, let all brothers leave. But we, too, are stuck, we too are Indians," Kumar said.

The next phase of the mission, which starts in the UAE from May 26, will fly out to places including Goa, Chandigarh, Jaipur, Kolkata and multiple places in Tamil Nadu - Chennai, Madurai, Trichy and Coimbatore. There are also 56 flights to Kerala.

A total of 81 flights operated by Air India and subsidiary Air Indian Express will repatriate around 14,000 Indians till June 8.
24/05/20 Ashwani Kumar/Khaleej Times

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Four Flights Land In Bengaluru With Returnees

Bengaluru: Four evacuation flights of national carrier Air India and its subsidiary landed in the city airport, with about 700 overseas returnees to Karnataka from Jakarta, Singapore, Melbourne and Dubai, an official said on Saturday.

“Three evacuation flights of Air India and one of Air India Express landed at the Kemegowda international airport on the city’s northern outskirts safely, with about 700 passengers from Jakarta in Indonesia, Singapore, Melbourne in Australia and Dubai in the UAE,” the official told IANS here.

While the flight from Jakarta via Mumbai arrived earlier in the day, three other flights from Singapore, Melbourne via New Delhi and Dubai came in the night.

The state-run airline, however, did not share the flight details to reveal how many passengers flew in each aircraft, including men and women.

Flights from Jakarta and Melbourne have landed in the city for the first time, while those from Singapore and Dubai have flown in earlier too.

“The passengers’ profile indicated they were distressed workers, students, tourists, pilgrims, pregnant women, elderly persons and children who were stranded in various countries for over two months since overseas flights were suspended on March 23 and lockdown was extended from March 25 to May 31 to contain the coronavirus spread,” the official noted.

As per the standard operating procedure and guidelines of the state health department, all the passengers were screened with thermal device and tested to ensure they were asymptomatic before leaving the airport,” a nodal officer said.

The returnees were given a spare mask to wear all the time and a sanitiser to wash their hands.
24/05/20 IANS/Kalinga TV

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600 stuck abroad to reach Gaya in 3 days

Gaya: Nearly 600 natives of Bihar and Jharkhand, who are stuck abroad due to the Covid-19 lockdown and the cancellation of international flights, will reach Gaya in the next three days. The evacuation exercise is being undertaken by Air India as part of the Vande Bharat Mission.

However, the airlines has not released the final passengers’ list yet and the figures are based on informed estimates. Since the first special flight from the United Kingdom had landed at the Gaya airport with only 41 passengers on May 18, AAI sources have not ruled out a lower turnout this time.

A Muscat-Delhi-Gaya flight (AI-0974) is scheduled to arrive at Gaya at 6.20am on Sunday. Two other flights — AI-0972 from Doha and AI-0952 from Kazakhstan — will reach here on May 25 and 26, respectively.

Gaya district magistrate (DM) Abhishek Singh said all the arrangements had been made to welcome the foreign returnees and send them to quarantine centres for 14 days.

“Gayaites do not need to worry because we are taking all precautionary measures. Any foreign returnee with Covid-19 symptoms will immediately be segregated and isolated. Besides, sufficient number of rooms are available in hotels and guesthouses to quarantine those who come back,” the DM told this newspaper on Saturday.
24/05/20 Abdul Qadir/Times of India

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India announces more flights from Oman

Muscat: The Indian Embassy in Muscat has announced additional flights to India from Oman, as part of the second leg of Phase 2 of the Mission Vande Bharat. Changes, if any, will be announced subsequently by the Embassy, a statement said.

"Passenger lists for all the above-mentioned flights will be finalised by the Embassy on the basis of information received by it. Priority will be given to medical emergency cases, pregnant women, workers in distress, senior citizens as well as to other Indian nationals who are stranded in difficult situations," the Embassy said.

The Embassy will be contacting the short-listed people for each flight directly through email/telephone and will then share the list of short-listed people with Air India. All such people will be contacted by Air India for booking of tickets.

"The cost of tickets will have to be borne by the passengers themselves and air tickets will be issued by the airline only to short listed persons. All passengers are required to confirm acceptance of all conditions of travel, including quarantine requirements in India as well as health requirements in order to board the flight," the statement added.
24/05/20 Times of Oman

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100 passengers from USA screened at Mohali Airport

Chandigarh/Mohali: As many as 100 passengers who were stranded in USA arrived at the Mohali International airport in an Air India flight on Friday. The flight carried 61 passengers belonging to various districts in Punjab while the rest belong to Chandigarh and Himachal Pradesh (HP). All the passengers of Punjab were put under quarantine for 14 days in different government facilities.

Civil Surgeon Dr Manjit Singh who led the examination teams said that no passenger was suffering from fever, cough, cold etc. He said the 61 passengers included five people from Mohali district. The flight was operated under the Vande Bharat Mission launched by the government of India to repatriate the Indian nationals stuck in different countries due to the lockdown imposed to contain Covid-1

The medical team examined the passengers with a non-contact infrared thermometer. Dr Manjit Singh added that the District Health Department has worked hard to check the spread of coronavirus in Mohali district and at present there is no active case in the district.

The District Nodal Officer, Dr Harmandeep Kaur Brar said that the flight reached Mohali via New Delhi and all the passengers were examined in collaboration with the airport authorities. She said that all the passengers will not be sent home yet as a precaution measure and will be quarantined at government facilities for 14 days.
She said that during the screening, the health officials took utmost precaution. Deputy Medical Commissioner Dr Daljit Singh Pardesi, Dr Harmandeep Kaur and Health Inspector Bhupinder Singh Dahri were also present at the airport.
23/05/20 Indian Express

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Evacuation flights from Male, Doha land in Bengaluru

Bengaluru: Evacuation planes from Male in Maldives and Doha in Qatar landed here with returnees from Karnataka after they were stranded for two months due to suspension of international flights since March 23 and extended lockdown, an official said on Friday.

"An Air-India flight (#0266) with 152 passengers from Male and its subsidiary Express flight (IX-0822) with 177 returnees and 5 infants from Doha landed here safely at 6:50p.m. and 9:05p.m," an airline official told IANS here.

Both the flights are first from the respective countries to Bengaluru, bringing in returnees to the southern state in the second phase of the Vande Bharat mission, being carried out to evacuate Indians stranded the world over.

"As per the standard operating procedure and guidelines of the state health department, all the passengers were screened with thermal device and tested to ensure they were asymptomatic before leaving the airport," a nodal officer said.

The returnees were given a spare mask to wear all the time and a sanitiser to wash their hands.

"The luggage of all passengers were screened and disinfected before handing over to them after they completed formalities such as filling the self-declaration form and downloading of the Quarantine App for contact tracing later, said the official.

The passengers were ferried from the airport in state-run buses in batches for 14-day institutional quarantine in hotels and resorts across the city.

The flights were 6th and 7th to Karnataka of the national carrier and its Express arm, which are operating the service to repatriate thousands of Indians, including distressed workers, migrants, students, senior citizens and tourists, stranded overseas.
22/05/20 IANS/Outlook

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IndiGo to operate repatriation flights from Kerala to Middle East

Mumbai: Low cost carrier IndiGo will be operating 97 repatriation flights between India and Middle East, said the airline on Thursday. So far, repatriation flights carrying stranded passengers to and from India were being operated only by Air India and Air India Express. However the government has now allocated about 180 repatriation flights to private carriers.
All the 97 flights will be operated to/from Kerala. Among these will be 36 flights to/from Saudi Arabia, 28 from Doha, 23 from Kuwait and 10 from Muscat. Ronojoy Dutta, CEO, IndiGo said: ``We had expressed eagerness to support Indians government’s repatriation efforts from the Middle East.
21/05/20 Manju V/Times of India

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IndiGo to fly 28 repatriation flights from Qatar to India

Doha: IndiGo, an Indian budget airline, will fly 28 repatriation flights from Qatar to India. Till now only state-owned Air India and Air India Express were allowed to take back Indians who wished to go home.

IndiGo is allowed to operate 97 flights to Gulf countries from Kerala. The flight dates or airports are not announced yet. 

In a press conference this afternoon Indian Aviation Minister has said that Indian private airlines has shown interest in joining the Vande Bharat Mission of repatriating Indians from different parts of the world. He said they will be allowed to join in and later maybe International airlines also could join in the mission. He didn’t divulge any details.

In a statement today IndiGo said that they have been “authorised to operate 97 Kerala reparation flights to the Middle East. Adhering all the precautionary measures, the flights will be operated between Kerala and Qatar, Kuwait, Oman and Saudi Arabia. IndiGo has been granted nearly half of the total 180 repatriation flights allotted to private airlines."

The 97 repatriation flights will include 28 from Doha, 23 from Kuwait, 10 from Muscat and 36 flights from Saudi to Kerala.
21/05/20 Peninsula

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Vande Bharat Mission : 581 expats land at Kochi Intl Airport in three flights

Kochi: As part of the Vande Bharat Mission to repatriate stranded Indians abroad, three more flights carrying 581 expats landed at the International Airport here.
Airport sources said on Thursday that Two flights of Air India from London and Manila and one Air India Express flight from Dubai carrying the expats landed on Wednesday.
Air India London-Kochi flight carrying 186 passengers--- 93 each males and females landed at the Airport. They include nine children below 10 years, 24 pregnant women and three senior citizens. As many as 123 returnees were taken to COVID Care Centres and 63 were placed under home quarantine.
21/05/20 UNI

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Two special flights to bring Indians back from Germany on May 28, 29

Government is undertaking largest ever evacuation of stranded Indian nationals from countries across the world to India under the Vande Bharat Mission. The second phase of Vande Bharat Mission began from the 16th of this month and is coming to an end today.

18 additional countries were covered under the second phase including Indonesia, Thailand, Australia, Italy, France, Germany, Ireland, Canada, Japan, Nigeria, Kazakhstan, Ukraine, Krgyzstan, Belarus, Georgia, Tajikistan and Armenia.

The ambit is being broadened every week in a phased manner and government is now looking to bring back more stranded nationals from Europe. As part of the Vande Bharat Mission, two special Air India flights have been scheduled from Germany to India on the 28th and 29th of this month to Delhi and Bengaluru.

The Embassy of India, Berlin has received a large number of registrations from Indian nationals stranded in Germany to return to India. Passengers will have to bear the cost of travel by these flights as well as for the mandatory quarantine facilities on arrival to India. Besides, Air India will operate a special evacuation flight from Stockholm on 6th of June to New Delhi and Mumbai.

Air India will operate a special evacuation flight from Amsterdam on 8th June to New Delhi. It is also operating special flights to Delhi and Ahmedabad from Paris on 26th May and from Paris to Bangalore and Kochi on 27th May. Meanwhile, repatriation of 2288 Indians stranded in the UK have been done through 8 Air India flights till 17th May.
21/05/20 Indian Awaaz

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Doha, Dammam flights with 263 evacuees land in Hyderabad

Hyderabad : Two evacuation flights with 263 evacuees from Qatar and Saudi Arabia landed at the Rajiv Gandhi International Airport here on Wednesday.

Under the second phase of Vande Bharat Mission, Air India Express IX 244 from Doha (Qatar) landed at 7.26 p.m. with 184 Indian citizens, airport sources said.

Later, Air India flight AI 1910 from Dammam (Saudi Arabia) with 79 passengers landed at 10.48 p.m.

The passengers of both the flights were transported to the designated locations in the city for a mandatory 14-day quarantine as per the guidelines of the Ministry of Home Affairs.

To facilitate the arriving passengers, the Hyderabad International Airport has kept the international arrivals and the entire stretch right from the aerobridge to the arrivals ramp fully sanitised and fumigated, sources said.

The airport also enforced the social distancing among passengers right from the aerobridge to across the terminal.

All arriving passengers and aircraft crew were brought out from the aircraft in a batch of 20-25 persons each. Each passenger/crew was screened by the Thermal Cameras positioned at the aerobridge exit under supervision of the Airport Health officials (APHO) as per the directives of the Ministry of Health iamp; Family Welfare prior to immigration formalities.

After the health screening of passengers, CISF personnel in their protective gear escorted the group of passengers to immigration clearance.
20/05/20 IANS/New Kerala

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Rs 95 lakh-Rs 1.7 crore: Airfare war to bring film crew home

Kochi: An airfare war has broken out among chartered airliners to bring the film crew of “Djibouti” and “Aadujeevitham” home. Stuck in Djibouti and Jordan, respectively, the teams of artists and technicians are waiting for the resumption of international flight service to fly back to India. Aviation industry sources told TNIE that many airliners, including Air India, are in discussion with the crew to transport them to Kochi airport, and are quoting a fare between Rs 95 lakh and Rs 1.7 crore per flight.

“We have to get a lot of mandatory clearances to operate chartered flights to bring the film crew back home. Air India, being the country’s flag carrier, has a lot of advantage in getting nod from the ministry of civil aviation. But we are also in the race by offering highly competitive rates,” said a senior executive of a chartered airliner.

Chartered airliner Halo Airways Pvt Ltd has submitted a quote to operate special chartered aircraft to transport 90-odd crew members of film ‘Djibouti’ from Djibouti to Kochi, said its CEO Shoby T Paul. “Once we get the approval, an A-320 aircraft will be used from Dubai for the operation which will cost below `1 crore. All the stipulated Covid-19 safety protocols will be followed and we will ensure that all passengers adhere to the guidelines put in place by central government for international travellers,” he said.
20/05/20  Ajay Kanth/New Indian Express

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Govt to allow private airlines to operate repatriation flights

In a respite for private domestic carrier, who are struggling with poor finances due to grounding since March, the government will soon allow these private airlines to conduct repatriation flights to bring back Indians stuck in foreign land.
The aviation ministry today held a meeting, which was convened by aviation secretary Pradeep Sigh Kharola, along with all airlines to discuss the issue and discussions were held to allow private airlines for the flights.
“The fares and flights, which the private carriers will operates, are still under discussions and will be announced soon,” said a top government official, who did not want to be identified.
Currently, national carrier Air India and its low-cost subsidiary Air India Express has been carrying out such flights on behalf of the government. While Air India, which has long-haul aircraft in its fleet, and can evacuate Indians from the US and Europe, private domestic carriers can provide evacuation flights to short-haul international destinations.
Another senior official added that airlines will have to take permission from the Directorate General of Civil Aviation (DGCA) before every such flight.
“Since these flights are unscheduled, airlines will have to take approvals for those flights,” said another government official, on a condition of anonymity.
Such repatriation flights, where passengers are charged for travel, will provide revenues to airlines, who have been grounded since end of March and are under deep financial stress.
The permission for repatriation flights has come after the government did not provide any support to the ailing airline industry in the Rs 20 lakh crore bailout package announced last week.
20/05/20 Mihir Mishra/Economic Times

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Zurich Airport International AG gets security clearance for development of Rs 29,560 crore Jewar airport

New Delhi: Zurich Airport International AG has got the Security Clearance for the development of Rs 29,560 crore Noida International Greenfield Airport at Jewar. Last year in November, Zurich Airports won the contract to build and operate Jewar Airport, which will act as the second airport for Delhi, for a period of 40 years that includes 4-years construction period in the first phase.
Zurich Airport International AG manages the Zurich Airport in Switzerland. Last year, this Swiss company emerged as the frontrunner after financial bids for the Jewar airport were opened by Noida International Airport Limited (NIAL). It offered the highest per-passenger fee of Rs 401 to the government.
The first phase of construction was expected to commence in January 2020, with the fourth and final phase scheduled to be completed by 2050. The massive Jewar airport is scheduled to begin operations in March 2023, initially handling a maximum capacity of 60 lakh passengers annually.
Once completed, the airport in Jewar near the Yamuna Expressway will be India's largest airport. The proposed airport will have six runways, at par with the world's largest airports. Currently, Delhi’s Indira Gandhi International (IGI) airport is the biggest in India with three runways. Jewar airport after completion will be counted along with two of the largest airports in the world that are O’Hare International Airport in Chicago, spread over 7,200 acres with eight runways, and Dallas/Fort Worth International Airport in Texas which has seven runways.
Uttar Pradesh Energy Minister Shrikant Sharma said last year that the first runway of the airport will be ready by 2023. A total of 19 bidders had shown interest in the project, he then told reporters after a meeting of the state cabinet.
The billion-dollar airport project would comprise an area of about 5,000 acres. The construction of the airport would be conducted in phases. In the first phase, 2,500 acres would be used for construction, following which the operations from this airport would be able to benefit 12 million passengers on a yearly basis.
19/05/20 ETNowNews.com

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Two airports in Andhra receive 459 stranded Indians

Amaravati: An Air India flight carrying 145 people stranded in London, landed at Vijayawada Airport here on Wednesday, as part of the biggest ever off-shore evacuation drive of Indian citizens under the Vande Bharat Mission.

The international airport in Visakhapatnam received two flights, one from Manila (Philippines) and the other from Abu Dhabi with 166 and 148 passengers respectively on Tuesday night, airport authorities said.

The national carrier from London arrived via Mumbai at the Airport at 8 AM, Vijayawada Airport Director G Madhusudhana Rao said adding this was the first flight received after the lockdown was enforced across the country including Andhra Pradesh.

"As per protocols all the passengers were checked and sent to quarantine with the help of the state government. Immigration and customs clearance was done here only. The flight landed as an international transit flight," the official told PTI.

"We have set up five medical counters for screening of the passengers. Also, we have set up counters district-wise for the convenience of the passengers," he said.
20/05/20 PTI/New Indian Express

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167 Indians Deported From US Over Illegal Stay Land At Amritsar Airport

Amritsar: Nearly 167 Indians, who were deported from the United States, arrived at Amritsar Airport by Omni Air International Airlines on Tuesday.
"Out of the 167, 79 are from Haryana, the rest are from other states,"  Sub Divisional Magistrate (SDM) Deepak Sharma said.

According to the official, Indians were deported for different reasons, the major reason being illegal stay in the US.

They arrived in Amritsar on special flights arranged by the Indian government.

After their medical examination, all the deportees were sent to a quarantine centre in line with the norms of the Ministry of Home Affairs (MHA) and the Ministry of Civil Aviation.
20/05/20 ANI/NDTV

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Air India repatriation flight carrying 59 Indonesians lands in Jakarta

Jakarta: Some 59 Indonesian citizens impacted by the Indian government's lockdown policy to fight the transmission of the new coronavirus disease (COVID-19) have flown back to Jakarta from the Indira Gandhi International Airport on Wednesday morning.

The 59 Indonesians were repatriated aboard an Air India flight AI 13081 that took off from the Indira Gandhi International Airport at 6:31 a.m. local time and was scheduled to arrive at the Soekarno-Hatta International Airport at 2:45 p.m. local time.

Apart from the 59 Indonesians, comprising 38 tourists, 10 students, three badminton players, and seven professionals, the aircraft also flew 13 Indian citizens and a Russian national, the Indonesian Embassy in New Delhi noted in a press statement on Wednesday.

The same aircraft will carry several Indian citizens in Jakarta to their country of origin, the Indonesian embassy noted, adding that this repatriation was testament to the Indonesian government's commitment to protecting its citizens abroad.

"Offering protection to all Indonesian citizens abroad has become a priority in our diplomacy, especially in the time of crisis," Indonesian Ambassador to India Arto Suryodipuro was quoted as saying.

Before boarding the Air India flight, the Indonesian embassy's task force personnel briefed them on the healthcare protocols that they should follow, including wearing hazmat suits and face masks, during the flight and until their arrival.

The task force personnel also equipped them with several travel documents, including notifications corroborating their good health and not exhibiting symptoms of COVID-19 and eligible for boarding the aircraft, according to the Indonesian embassy.
20/05/20 Antara News

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Airport set to receive foreign returnees

Vijayawada: With the first international flight from Saudi Arabia and the United Kingdom bringing back Indians stranded abroad expected to land in Vijayawada today, district collector A Mohammed Imtiaz and Nuzivid sub-collector Swapnil Dinakar inspected Vijayawada International Airport on Tuesday.
“Each and every international passenger who reaches the city will be thoroughly tested before heading for their home towns in buses,” Imtiaz said.
The collector inspected the special health desk arranged at the airport and directed officials to thoroughly screen foreign returnees. “We will strictly follow the Covid-19 medical protocol at the international airport. Each passenger will be screened before boarding buses. Special counters will be arranged for the registration,” Imtiaz said.

“Each foreign returnee has to undergo a mandatory 14 day home or government quarantine period as per guidelines and we have made necessary arrangements for this,” the collector said, adding, “We have alerted district administration across the state so that they can arrange quarantine facility.”
The collector said foreign returnees can opt for paid quarantine facilities at star and other prominent hotels in the city that have come forward to extend this service.
20/05/20 Venu Lanka/Times of India

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Air India flights bring home 314 expats to Visakhapatnam

Visakhapatnam: Two Air India flights under Vande Bharat Mission Phase-II arrived at Visakhapatnam airport on Tuesday and they brought back 314 Indians stranded in Abu Dhabi and Manila. While the flight from Abu Dhabi landed at 8.45 pm, the other one was delayed by more than an hour and reached the airport after 10 pm.

According to Vizag airport director M Raja Kishore, the passengers, soon after their arrival, underwent a series of examinations. As 25 of the 148 passengers in the Abu Dhabi flight are from Hyderabad, the flight left for the city later. Meanwhile, 166 Non-Resident Telugus were brought to the city from Manila. Of them, eight are from Vizag and the remaining are from other districts of the state. Special buses were arranged for the passengers and an ambulance was also kept ready. A day before, the airport authorities had conducted a trial run.
CISF personnel were deployed to check credentials of the passengers at the entry gate of the terminal building, and their identity was verified through cameras. “The airport has been made ‘touch-free’ with the technology available. The passenger will have to undergo a mandatory 14-day quarantine. They are also given the option of paid quarantine,” he said. Meanwhile, two more flights from Doha and Kuala Lumpur are scheduled to arrive on May 20 and 22, respectively. In both the flights, around 300 passengers are expected to be brought home.
20/05/20 New Indian Express

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Air India special flight from Philippines to arrive in Kochi

Manila: An Air India special flight carrying stranded Indians from the Philippines will arrive on Wednesday in Kochi, Kerala, via Mumbai.

"Bringing Indians Home!#VandeBharatMission #Philippines Phase 2 Day 2 begins! AI 1319 Manila-Mumbai-Kochi passengers queue up for check-in after the thermal screening @MIAAGovPH. Passengers waiting are served lunch by the Embassy," the Indian Embassy in the Philippines said on Twitter.

The Embassy also said that over a thousand stranded Indians have been evacuated so far from the Philippines, and appreciated the efforts of the External Affairs Ministry, EAM S Jaishankar as well as Foreign Secretary Harsh Vardhan Shringla. These evacuations are being carried out as part of the Government of India's second phase of 'Vande Bharat' operation.
20/05/20 ANI/Times Now News

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Jaipur Foot USA Chairman Prem Bhandari applauds Air India crew for service amid COVID-19 crisis

New York: Jaipur Foot USA Chairman Prem Bhandari has described the ‘Vande Bharat’ exercise to repatriate Indians stranded abroad as a "historic humanitarian mission” by the Indian government as he along with other members of the Indian-American community accorded a warm welcome to an Air India crew here.
    The Air India flight arrived from India into the J F K International Airport in New York on Tuesday and in a special gesture of gratitude for their service, Bhandari welcomed them as guests in the Stay Bridge hotel in New York's iconic Times Square.
    “The Vande Bharat is a historic humanitarian mission and unprecedented effort” launched by Prime Minister Narendra Modi to repatriate thousands of Indian nationals stranded during this coronavirus pandemic, Bhandari said.
“The pilots and crew members of Air India are warriors for us who have put their lives at risk by coming to New York, the epicenter of COVID-19, to fly their stranded countrymen back home," he said.
    Coronavirus cases in New York stands at over 353,000 with over 23,834 deaths, according to Johns Hopkins University.
    He said the Air India crew are guests of the Indian-American community and people of Indian-origin in the US as he welcomed them at the hotel owned by Chandra and KK Mehta in Times Square.
    “You have come to a second home. I salute you on behalf of Indians and the Indian-American community in the US for your services in the times of such crisis."
    He also expressed gratitude to Air India Chairman and Managing Director Rajiv Bansal for the opportunity to be of service to the Air India team.
    Consul General of India in New York Sandeep Chakravorty applauded the Air India team saying they have risen to the occasion in the face of the COVID-19 challenges.
    He said the Consulate and the community organisations in New York applaud the Air India crew for rising to the call of duty and for their service to the nation.
20/05/20 Yoshita Singh/PTI/The Week

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First flight from Bahrain lands at Rajiv Gandhi International Airport

Hyderabad: The first special evacuation flight from Bahrain landed at Hyderabad’s Rajiv Gandhi International Airport on Tuesday evening, with 175 passengers on board — 174 adults and one infant. The Air India Express flight, IX 890, operated under phase 2 of the Vande Bharat Mission, reached Hyderabad at 8.31 pm. All passengers were escorted out of the facility — to paid quarantine centres in the city — through a fully sanitised arrivals international terminal, an airport source said.

While the flight came as a huge relief to many Indians, several Bahrain nationals from Hyderabad appealed to authorities to provide a return flight to their country. “Why are there no flights from Hyderabad to Bahrain? Aren’t there any Bahraini residents in Hyderabad wishing to travel to Bahrain? Though there is a flight coming back to Hyderabad from Bahrain. Only flights from Mumbai and Thiruvananthapuram,” wrote Gazala Fatima while many said they struggled to get passes, to travel to Mumbai, to board the flight back home.
20/05/20 Times of India

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Another Kuala Lumpur-Bengaluru flight added to plan

Bengaluru: Two more Bengaluru-bound flights, including one from Kuala Lumpur on May 20, have been added to Phase 2 of the Vande Bharat mission. The other flight will take off from Yangon, Myanmar on May 28.
Many people from Karnataka and stranded in Malaysia had complained they were under-represented on a flight from Kuala Lumpur to Bengaluru/Ahmedabad arriving Tuesday.
Now, a total 157 stranded Indians are expected to leave Kuala Lumpur for Karnataka: 97 on May 20 and 60 on May 19. Eighteen international flights will land at Kempegowda International Airport as part of Phase 2 of the mission.
Besides under-representation, exorbitant ticket prices have also been a sore point, but disgruntlement appear to have been ignored since fares for the Kuala Lumpur-Bengaluru flight for May 20 has been fixed at Rs 33,000 — almost double the cost of flights from the Malaysian city to Chennai, Trichy or Kochi. However, many, including students, say they have no choice but to take the flight since they have no income to sustain themselves in a foreign country and many others have lost their jobs. An external travel agency has been appointed to handle the ticketing process.
An Air India spokesperson defended the high ticket prices saying, “Most flights are operating with one-way load due to visa restrictions. Saleable capacity is reduced due to mandatory guideline to keep nine or more seats vacant, for isolation of onboard symptomatic passengers. Majority of the destinations in Phase 2 are not AI online stations and AI does not have long-term agreements with ground-handling agencies at these airports or other support services.”
19/05/20 Swathy R Iyer/Times of India

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Flight from Yangon to land at Calcutta airport on May 29

Calcutta: Calcutta has got only one international flight in the next phase of the project to bring back Indians stuck abroad because of the lockdown, though hundreds of people from Bengal are stranded across the globe and are desperate to return home.

The civil aviation ministry has issued a list of flights Air India will operate till June 13 to bring back stranded Indians from various countries. On the list there is only one flight allotted to Calcutta, which will arrive from Yangon in Myanmar on May 29.

The same day, a flight each from Mumbai and Bhubaneswar will land in Calcutta, bringing stranded Indians who will reach those two cities from abroad. “People from Bengal who are stranded in Mumbai and Bhubaneswar will not be allowed to board these flights,” said an official of the civil aviation ministry.

Metro has reported that Calcutta had no flights in the first phase of the Vande Bharat mission to bring back stranded Indians. In the second phase, a flight from Dhaka landed in Calcutta on May 18 with 169 Indians stranded in Bangladesh.
In what ministry officials called an “extended” second phase, most flights from cities around the world are being brought to Delhi and Mumbai and from there passengers are being connected to other Indian cities.

“We had expected a few more flights for Calcutta. At least connecting flights from Delhi and Mumbai would have helped. But there is only one international flight, from Yangon, and two connecting ones from Mumbai and Bhubaneswar,” said a state government official.

Calcuttans stuck abroad are desperately contacting Indian missions and the civil aviation ministry but are being asked to wait.
20/05/20 Sanjay Mandal/Telegraph

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Empty middle seat? Depends on which country you are flying in

Sydney/Beijing/Helsinki: In Thailand, you cannot have food or water in flight and must wear a mask. In Malaysia and Indonesia, the plane needs to be half-empty. In the United States and Europe, it's not mandatory for airlines to leave the middle seat open.

Measures to stem the spread of coronavirus have changed how people travel, as Beijing resident Feng Xueli, 26, found when she took a domestic flight this month. The aircraft was full - allowed under the Chinese rules.

"We needed to wear a mask during the flight and there were PA announcements basically asking for our cooperation with these anti-virus measures put in place, which made me a bit nervous," Feng said. "You also need to go through a lot of temperature checks and security checks when you leave the airport." Travellers, airlines and airports are grappling with a hodgepodge of rules put in place during the pandemic that will make flying different in almost every country.

"When flying restarts, you are already working against the clock. There is still a latent fear of travel," said Subhas Menon, head of the Association of Asia Pacific Airlines. "It's not going to be such a smooth passage when you travel because of all of the measures that are going to be introduced." A little more than a year after uneven national responses to the grounding of the Boeing 737 MAX, the industry is once again facing piecemeal regulation.

The last trigger for such widespread changes in the way airlines operate was the 2001 attacks in the United States, which ushered in new security measures.

"People globally have understood the security requirements that came after 9/11. We would like to see that kind of standardisation of protocols," said Boeing vice-president Mike Delaney, leader of Boeing's Confident Travel Initiative.
19/05/20 Tribune

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900 Indians stranded in Japan wait for rescue flights as visas end, funds vanish over months

Tokyo: A large number of Indian nationals are stranded in Japan for over almost 2 months now. While some reached Japan on a business trip, some were on company contracts who were to return to India in March or April. But as the Indian government called for a complete nationwide lockdown on March 25, they were informed that their flight bookings were no longer valid.

Now with their visas expiring, contracts ending and no medical insurance in hand, over 900 Indians stranded in Japan stare at an uncertain future.

Soon after the lockdown announcement, the Indian nationals took to Twitter and other social media platforms to send an SOS message to the Indian government and Indian embassy in Tokyo.

As the government announced its second phase of the evacuation plan for Indians stranded across 31 nations under the Vande Bharat Mission, these stranded nationals in Japan saw a ray of hope to return home.
After a social media post by the Indian embassy in Tokyo, the people quickly filled forms to be shortlisted for return. But only two flights to Mumbai and Delhi on May 28 and June 1 have been confirmed by the government so far.

The Air India flight that is scheduled to fly out Indians from Narita International Airport in Tokyo has the maximum capacity to accommodate only 200 people without any in-flight social distancing.
Now, the question is what about the remaining Indians who are still stranded across the Japanese archipelago. Most of them belong to the southern Indian states who were not shortlisted by the embassy to board the flights to Mumbai or Delhi.

On the other hand, most of these people who are stranded in Tokyo and other parts of Japan were visiting the country on contracts that expired long ago and some of them even had to vacate their residences. Moreover, they do not have any medical insurance and in the midst of the coronavirus pandemic, it is a matter of concern for them as medical aid in Japan is an extremely expensive affair.
19/05/20 Paulomi Barman/India Today

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