BackVirgin Atlantic to start operating between India and UK from 2 September
Commercial international flights, apart from repatriation flights, have been suspended in India since 25 MarchThe latest announcement by the airline comes even as the Indian government is yet to announce dates for the resumption of international flights
PremiumNEW DELHI : British full service carrier Virgin Atlantic will start operating between New Delhi, Mumbai and London from 2 September, the airline said in a statement on Monday.
The latest announcement by the airline comes even as the Indian government is yet to announce dates for the resumption of international flights.
Apart from New Delhi and Mumbai, the airline is also set to operate to destinations like New York, Los Angeles, Hong Kong from London during July, and to destinations like Tel Aviv, San Francisco and Barbados during August.
“As countries around the world begin to relax travel restrictions, we look forward to welcoming our customers back onboard and flying them safely to many destinations across our network. From 20th July we will resume services to New York, Los Angeles and Hong Kong then from 1st August onwards, we will resume passenger flying to 17 additional destinations around the world including Delhi, Mumbai and Tel Aviv," Virgin Atlantic's chief commercial official Juha Jarvinen said in a statement.
Civil aviation minister Hardeep Singh Puri had last week said that the government will consider opening up international flights on a case to case basis in future, without elaborating on a time frame for resumption of such flights
"For international air travel, (the first condition is that) you need the airspace to be open. That means you must allow people to fly in. You must have the border acceptance to be free. What happens as a result of covid-19 is that many countries decided not to allow nationals other than their own to come in," Puri said.
When contacted a Virgin Atlantic spokesperson said that the airline is working on getting ready its India operations by 2 September, as the government is yet to set a date for resumption of international flights.
"We are working towards this date (2 September), and will be watching for developments closely. Most likely, it (resumption of international flights from India) should happen before (2 September), if not, then we shall relook at the dates," the Virgin Atlantic spokesperson added.
Commercial international flights, apart from repatriation flights, have been suspended in India since 25 March. Though domestic flights were allowed to resume, albeit in a limited capacity, by the government, it is yet to set a date for the resumption of international flights.
Unlock a world of Benefits! From insightful newsletters to real-time stock tracking, breaking news and a personalized newsfeed – it's all here, just a click away! Login Now!
