The Indian Government has now extended suspension of scheduled flights till December 31, 2020. This move comes in the wake of rising Coronavirus cases.
However, scheduled flights under the Vande Bharat Mission and air bubble arrangements with several countries like the United Kingdom, United States, France, and Germany will continue. Also, those eligible as per the government norms will be allowed to fly to and from India on them.
The Directorate General of Civil Aviation (DGCA) issued a circular regarding this, stating “This restriction shall not apply to all international cargo and flights specifically approved by the DGCA.” However, international scheduled flights may be allowed on selected routes by the competent authority on a case-to-case basis, it added.
Earlier this month, scheduled international flights were suspended till November 30. As of now, India has entered into air bubble arrangements with more than 20 countries, even as regular scheduled international flights continue to remain banned due to the COVID-19 pandemic.
The ban on scheduled international flights was imposed on March 23 this year due to the Coronavirus outbreak, as travel restrictions were imposed across the world. All this while, India has been operating special Vande Bharat Mission flights to several countries.