Air operations smooth on Day 2, 1 flyer tests +ve
Airports are abuzz, and passengers are back in the air. Operations have started in Andhra Pradesh. These numbers are set to soar higher HARDEEP PURI,
Union civil aviation minister
NEWDELHI:AFTER the resumption of domestic flights the previous day following a two-month suspension was marred by confusion and cancellations amid the reluctance of some states to allow inbound travel,operations on Tuesday were smooth, with airports handling 325 departures and 283 arrivals till the evening civil aviation minister Hardeep Puri said.
Around 41,673 passengers had flown until Tuesday evening, Puri said, the day after the suspension imposed for the coronavirus lockdown ended.
“Airports are abuzz, and passengers are back in the air. Operations have started in Andhra Pradesh from today. These numbers are all set to soar higher,” the minister said, adding that a final report on how the day’s flight operations went will be prepared after details come in at midnight.
On Monday, more than half the expected 1,100 flights had to be cancelled as airlines had to reconcile to the varying public health rules of various states and rework their flight schedules. According to civil aviation ministry’s data 428 flights departed on Monday ferrying 30,550 passengers. There were 404 arrival flights, which means 24 flights had departed just before midnight and would have arrived on Tuesday morning.
The states agreed with the Centre on Sunday to allow a graded reopening of flight operations after putting in place local measures to quarantine and isolate passengers to avoid a spiralhimachal ling of Covid-19 infections.
Concerns over the possible spread of Covid-19 following the resumption of domestic travel have been rife. On Monday, a passenger flying on an Indigo flight from Chennai to Coimbatore was found Covid-19 positive. “We received confirmation from the Coimbatore airport doctor that a passenger who travelled on 6E 381 from Chennai to Coimbatore on 25th May evening, has tested positive. He is currently quarantined,” Indigo said in a statement Tuesday.
The two-month suspension of flights has already left the civil aviation sector reeling. According to the International Air Transport Association (IATA) the airline industry’s global debt could rise to $550 billion by the year-end. “A tough future is ahead of us. Containing Covid-19 and surviving financial shock is just the first hurdle. Post-pandemic measures will make operations more costly,” said Alexandre de Juniac, IATA’S director general and CEO.