UAE SUSPENDS FLIGHTS FROM PAKISTAN
The UAE General Civil Aviation Authority (GCCA) has announced a temporary suspension of flights from Pakistan, starting today, until a laboratory is set up for Covid-19
tests. The precautionary measure is to ensure the health and safety of arrivals from Pakistan. The GCCA said that passengers
on all flights, including transit ones, will not be received at UAE airports until the establishment of the laboratory.
437 new cases, 577 recoveries: The UAE yesterday confirmed 437 new cases, 577 recoveries and two deaths from the virus.
Speaking to Gulf News yesterday evening, Indian Ambassador to the UAE Pavan Kapoor said the missions would allow the airline to keep 75 per cent of seats for sale and 25 per cent of seats for people with emergency cases that will be routed through the missions.
“Three-fourth of the seats would be open for sale. The rest of them will be through the list we [missions] give.” The missions would continue to allot 100 per cent of the tickets through them till July 2, he clarified.
The ambassador said the fares of VBM flight tickets that are available for direct booking would remain the same as what was already being charged.
“Prices [for those booking the tickets directly from the airline] will be the same as the fares through the embassy or the consulate.”
Apart from giving the chance for people to opt for their preferred date, the direct booking system will also give them time to prepare for the journey.
When the missions finalise the list of passengers, many used to get the final call one or two days prior to their flights and the missions had the experience of some people refusing to fly due to the small window for their final preparations, the ambassador observed.
“Now, those who want to go can plan and book the tickets as per their convenience and those with compelling cases can still come through us,” he explained.
Kapoor said it had been observed that a large number of people with emergency reasons had already flown home either on VBM flights or through charter flights organised by community groups and companies.