Flights from India to UK to resume from Jan 6, says Puri
NEW DELHI: A day after the civil aviation ministry decided to resume flights between India and the UK from January 8, civil aviation minister Hardeep Singh Puri on Saturday offered more clarification and said flights from India to the UK can start on January 6, while operations from the UK to India will begin on January 8.
The schedule is valid till January 23. Till then 30 flights will operate every week, including 15 each by Indian and UK carriers, the minister said.
In the wake of the new mutant strain of Coronavirus, which is believed to be more contagious, India put an embargo on flight operations between the two countries on December 21, which became effective from December 23. Initially, the ban was till December 31, but was later extended to January 7. On Friday, the civil aviation ministry announced that the embargo will be partially lifted starting from January 8, with only a limited number of flights.
After India resumed regular flights to the UK under its air bubble agreement, 70 flights per week have been operated. The number has been brought down to 30 and will be revised only after January 23.
So far, 29 people in India have tested positive for the new strain of virus.
As the flight operations are being resumed, the health ministry has drawn up a detailed guideline on how international passengers will be checked. All passengers will have to submit a self-declaration form on the online portal www.newdelhiairport.in at least 72 hours before the scheduled travel. Carrying a negative RT-PCR test report is must, a copy of which is to be uploaded on the portal.