Vande Bharat Mission: Offering Free Tickets Would Affect Airlines’ Finances

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Civil Aviation Minister Hardeep Singh Puri on Monday said that Offering tickets free of cost on flights under the Vande Bharat Mission would have further affected the finances of Indian airlines including flag-carrier Air India.

The finances of airlines have been badly impacted because of the coronavirus pandemic.

“The COVID-19 pandemic has had an unprecedented impact on the entire global civil aviation sector. In view of stoppage/restrictions in both domestic/international flights, Air India and other Indian carriers are also in a financially distressed condition.” Puri said in a written reply to a question in Rajya Sabha.

“If tickets would have been offered free of cost, it would have further affected the finances and viability of Air India and other Indian carriers,” the minister noted.

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The government of India had started the Vande Bharat Mission on May 6 to help stranded people reach their destinations through special international flights on a payment basis. Scheduled international passenger flights have been suspended in India since March 23.

Between May 6 and August 31, a total of 5,817 inbound flights have been operated under the Vande Bharat mission from various countries, Puri said.


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Also Read: Only 21 Air India Routes Are Profitable: Hardeep Singh Puri

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Manish Khandelwal
Manish Khandelwal

Manish Khandelwal, a travel-tech enthusiast with over a decade of experience in the travel industry. Founder and Editor-in-Chief of Travelobiz.com, he's passionate about writing.

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