June 2: As directed by the Directorate General of Civil Aviation, the suspension of international flights has again been pushed forward now till June 30. Placed previously in March, the regular passenger flight suspension will remain in place till June 30.
However, the restrictions would not apply to international all-cargo flights and flights scheduled under the country’s air bubble arrangement. Recently, DGCA had issued an order that extended the suspension of schedules international commercial passenger service to/from India till 11.59 PM (India time) of June 30, 2021.
Even when the regular international flights have been suspended since March last year, several international flights have been operating under the bilateral air bubble agreements that India has signed with various nations aiming to ensure undisturbed essential travel of the passengers.
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The DGCA in its order stated, “This restriction shall not apply to international all-cargo operations and flights specifically approved by DGCA.” Further, the order also stated that the scheduled international scheduled flights may be allowed on several routes selected by the competent authority on a ‘case to case’ basis.
Facilitating citizens travel, India has, till now formed air bubble arrangements with 27 countries. The list includes the United Kingdom, the United States of America, United Arab Emirates, Bhutan, Kenya, Nepal, Maldives, Rwanda, Ukraine, Kuwait, Uzbekistan, Germany, Nigeria, France, among others. Other than this, as per the said agreement, special international flights can be operated between two countries by their airlines between their territories.
