India To Resume Scheduled International Flights From Dec 15, Except 14 Countries

Finally, a piece of great news for travelers planning to travel abroad this year-end, the Govt of India has allowed operations of scheduled international flights with several countries starting 15th December 2021.

The Ministry of Civil Aviation (MoCA) Govt of India, in an order issued on Friday, has divided countries into three parts based on the health ministry’s Covid analysis and accordingly allowed resumption of flights.

• Countries not at risk: Flights as per bilateral air service agreements or pre-Covid times. These include the US and Canada, among others.
• Countries at risk but with whom India has an air bubble agreement: Flights to be lowed at 75 percent of pre-Covid times.
• Countries at risk and with whom India does not have an air bubble: 50 percent of pre-Covid times.

Sources said that regular international flights have been allowed from all countries barring 14 countries.

Resumption of Scheduled International Flights to and From India by travelobiz on Scribd

The countries which do not included on the list are;

1. United Kingdom
2. France
3. Germany
4. Netherlands
5. Finland
6. South Africa
7. Brazil
8. Bangladesh
9. Botswana
10. China
11. Mauritius
12. New Zealand
13. Zimbabwe and
14. Singapore 

It’s worth mentioning here that scheduled international flights were suspended in March last year, as the country went into a complete lockdown amid the Coronavirus.

The decision to resume scheduled international flights has been taken in consultation with the health ministry in light of the Covid situation across the world, especially the emergence of the new B.1.1.529 strain first detected in South Africa.

The variant has since spread to neighboring Botswana, Israel, and Hong Kong.

Rajiv Bansal, the Aviation Ministry Secretary on Wednesday said that India may resume the scheduled international flight operations by the end of this year.

Last week the Union Aviation Minister, Jyotiraditya Scindia said that the government of India is “evaluating the process” to normalize international flight operations. Scindia also added that India was getting back to normal, the pandemic’s resurgence in parts of Europe can’t be ignored.

“We are evaluating the process. We are coming back to normalcy. First, we allowed 100% passenger capacity in our domestic flights and now we allowed in-flight meals in those flights,” Scindia said at the Confederation of Indian Industry’s (CII’s) Global Economy Policy Summit.

Also Read: Saudi Arabia To Allow Direct Entry of Travelers From India, 5 Other Countries Starting Dec 01