Lufthansa to resume India-Germany nonstop flights from today, no second crew layover

Lufthansa will resume its nonstop services between Germany and India from Wednesday as the second wave of Covid-19 stabilises, the airline has said.

In addition to this, there will also be no second crew change stopover in the Gulf, as was being done for nearly a month, thereby cutting the travel time up to three hours.

"We will resume nonstop flights from Germany to Delhi, Mumbai and Bangalore and will continue to operate 10 weekly flights throughout June," said a spokesperson of Lufthansa.

The airlines had early last month added a stop in Dubai for its India flights to ensure its pilots and cabin crew do not require a layover in the country as it dealt with a ravaging second wave.

However, the stop was later changed to Bahrain due to recent restrictions imposed by the UAE government to prevent the spread of the coronavirus.

"This change was made due to new UAE regulations that restrict flights between India and Dubai for passengers who were transiting there up to now for operational reason," the German airline had stated.

The group's decision to resume the flights has come at a time when India and its aviation sector has been badly hit by the pandemic.

The average number of daily fliers stood at 49,000 for the week ended 30 May in the country, compared with the same figure for the previous week and 60,000 in the week that ended on 16 May, according to a report.

Passengers are apprehensive about air travel amid rising caseload. Besides, the negative Covid-19 test reports that are mandated for travel, the imposition of mandatory home quarantine measures, and the lockdowns imposed by various states are adversely impacting the business.

Lufthansa Group runs Lufthansa airline as well as SWISS airline connecting India with Germany.

Scheduled international passenger flights have been suspended in India since March 23 last year. However, India has formed air bubble arrangements with around 27 countries, including Germany, since July last year to operate special international passenger flights under restrictions.