Category: Aviation

Turkey has imposed a 14-day quarantine on passengers from eight countries, including India, to prevent the spread of covid-19. Turkish Airlines has announced that it will impose quarantine for 14 days for people from eight countries, including Afghanistan, India, Pakistan, Sri Lanka, Bangladesh, Brazil, South Africa, and Nepal. Passengers traveling to these countries within the last 14 days must submit a negative result of the PCR test conducted a maximum of 72 hours prior to entry back into the country. Passengers arriving from the United Kingdom, Iran, Egypt, and Singapore must submit a negative result of the PCR test conducted ... Read more

From June 1, passengers on domestic flights will be allowed only half a seat. The Ministry of Civil Aviation has issued a new directive in the wake of the rising covid. At present, 80 percent of the seats are reserved for passengers. With the reduction in seats, there will be an increase in airfares. Domestic flights resumed on May 25, 2020, after a two-month hiatus last year. In the first phase, only 33 percent of the seats were filled. However, by December, the ministry had approved a gradual increase in the seat limit to 80 percent. Now that the number ... Read more

Refunds for canceled tickets are not getting from airlines. The non-receipt of the money is a further setback for the travel sector, which is in crisis in the lockdown. There are a number of travel agents in the state who have been stuck with airline ticket refunds for over a year. This has put small and medium enterprises in crisis. Passengers who have booked tickets are also approaching the establishments for a refund. Many of the services that booked directly tickets have been canceled due to restrictions imposed by the Gulf countries in the covid context. The money for the ... Read more

The flight service from India to Israel will resume on the 31st of this month. Minister of External Affairs V. Muraleedharan informed. The first flight will depart from Delhi. A schedule of flights up to July 31 has been prepared. Only those who have been granted an Israeli visa after the 21st of this month will be able to travel. Previous visa holders need to renew their visas. 72 hours prior RTPCR test results are essential for travel. Similarly, passengers must undergo a covid test after arriving in Israel. Also, the quarantine must be completed.

Air India to resume London-Mumbai flights In view of the covid-19 situation, Air India has announced that it will operate flights from London Heathrow Airport to Mumbai from May 17 to May 31. Air India has said that passengers should strictly abide by the covid directives and regulations. Air India had earlier canceled all flights to London from April 24 to 30 following a UK government decision to put India on the Red List in view of the covid-19 situation. “Air India will operate flights from London Heathrow to Mumbai from May 17 to May 31 (excluding May 18, 23, ... Read more

The Ministry of Civil Aviation has extended the ban on international flights in the country. The ban will last until May 31. The move comes in the wake of the covid situation in the country. The ban will not apply to cargo flights or special flights licensed by the DGCA. India has air bubble agreements with 28 countries. Flights to these countries will not be interrupted. At the same time, with the second expansion of covid, many countries had suspended flights from India. Last day alone, covid confirmed 3.85 lakh people in India.

Some airlines have increased fares to Rs 1.5 lakh in the wake of the UAE’s ban on flights from India to UAE taking effect at midnight today. The situation was aggravated when Air India and Air India Express booking sites went down for three days. Today, Air Arabia operates additional services from Kochi. Tickets for three of the six services to Sharjah soldout on yesterday afternoon. Some companies have tried to introduce chartered flights but have not received permission from the Department of Civil Aviation. You can reach the Gulf countries via Nepal but you have to stay in Quarantine ... Read more

The covid second wave has once again left the travel sector in limbo. Various airlines have come up with reliefs for those who are worried about their travel dates. You can change the date and time of the air ticket indefinitely without charging any additional fee. Many airlines, including Indigo, Air Asia, and SpiceJet, offer free rescheduling. Air Asia has announced that it will not charge a fee for changing the time and date on tickets booked until May 15. Indigo has made it clear that there will be no charge for rescheduling domestic flights booked between April 17 and ... Read more

Qatar Airways has been named the world’s first fully-fledged aircraft to fly the covid vaccine. The QR6421 Qatar Airways flight take off from Hamad International Airport at 11.00 am yesterday, carrying only pilots, cabin crew, and passengers who have completed the covid vaccination. The staff at the check-in counter also completed the covid vaccination. The plane, which flew over the Gulf region for three hours on the Doha-Doha service, landed at Hamad International Airport at 2.00 pm local time. Qatar Airways operates on state-of-the-art seamless systems, including the world’s first Zero-Touch Flight Entertainment technology. Qatar Airways is distributing 1,000 doses ... Read more

The Directorate General of Civil Aviation has tightened restrictions in the wake of a rise in Covid cases in the country. The DGCA has directed all airports to take disciplinary action such as spot fines for all passengers who do not comply with the Covid standards. Civil Aviation Minister HS Puri had yesterday warned that passengers violating Covid norms at airports would face police action as they increase surveillance in the Covid situation. Earlier, the Bangalore airport had decided to take action against passengers who refused to wear masks inside the airport terminal. Passengers who do not follow the instructions ... Read more

Kurnool Airport, at Orvakal, Andhra Pradesh was inaugurated on 25th MAR by Y.S Jaganmohan Reddy, Chief Minister, Andhra Pradesh, joined virtually by Hardeep Singh Puri, Minister of State Civil Aviation . Kurnool is the 6th airport in Andhra Pradesh to become functional after Kadapa, Visakhapatnam, Tirupati, Rajahmundry & Vijayawada. The flight operations at Kurnool airport will commence on 28th March 2021 under the Regional Connectivity Scheme – Ude Desh Ka Aam Nagrik (RCS-UDAN). Direct flight operations to Bangalore, Vishakhapatnam and Chennai will bring the region closer to the major hubs in the South India. These routes were approved by the ... Read more

Flying in India will soon become more expensive as the Ministry of Civil Aviation has accorded the approval for increase of ASF (Aviation Security Fees) With effect from 01 APR, domestic passengers will have to pay ASF at the rate of INR 200 per passenger whereas in the case of international passengers, the same would be levied at the rate INR 900 per passenger. Certain categories of travellers are however exempted from paying this fee,  including children under age of 2years, diplomatic passport holders, airline crew on duty, transit passengers and persons travelling on official duty for United Nations Peacekeeping ... Read more

On the commencement of the ‘Azadi Ka Amrit Mahotsav (India@75)’ launched by Government of India, the Ministry of Civil Aviation (MoCA) has proposed  about 392 routes under UDAN 4.1 bidding process.  The Regional Connectivity Scheme (RCS)- Ude Desh Ka Aam Nagrik (UDAN) is a flagship scheme of the Ministry of Civil Aviation (MoCA) envisaged to make air travel affordable and widespread in the country. The scheme intends to boost inclusive national economic growth, employment opportunities, and air transport infrastructure development across the nation. Till date, 325 routes and 56 airports including 5 heliports and 2 Water Aerodromes have been operationalised under the ... Read more

Emirates has announced it will increase services to popular holiday destinations, Maldives and Seychelles, ahead of the Easter break. Starting 28 March, the airline will offer customers 28 weekly flights to Male, and seven weekly flights to Mahe. The added services will meet market demand and offer customers greater flexibility, choice and connectivity while planning their travels this Easter holiday. Emirates currently offers customers 24 weekly flights to the Maldives, utilising a Boeing 777-300ER aircraft. Starting from 28 March until 18 April, the airline will ramp up services to 28 flights a week – offering customers enhanced connectivity to the ... Read more

The Directorate General of Civil Aviation (DGCA) on Saturday said that passengers will be “de-boarded” from flights if they don’t wear masks properly inside the aircraft or don’t follow “Covid-19 appropriate behaviour”. If a passenger violates protocol despite repeated warnings then the passenger will be treated as ‘Unruly Passenger’, the aviation regulator said. In its circular dated 13 March, the DGCA said, “It has been noticed that some travellers undertaking air journey do not adhere to ‘Covid-19 protocols’ which essentially involves wearing of masks properly that is not below the nose during all times of the journey from entering the ... Read more