The upcoming will mark an increase in the number of flights that will operate between India and other countries as the country looks to expand international travel. Over 85% of India’s eligible population has already received at least a single vaccination dose and a total of more than 100 crore doses have been dispensed so far. The officials are in touch with domestic and international airlines instructing them to increase the travel capacity while staying in a safe bubble. Currently, there are some European countries that are open to travel to/from India under guidelines set due to Covid-19.
The Current Scenario of Air Travel
India currently has an air bubble arrangement with countries like France, Germany, the Netherlands, and the UK. These terms allow the carriers of India and these other countries to operate their services between the two countries. The air bubble arrangement set between India and any of these countries clearly instructs the categories of people that are allowed to travel. Additional guidelines have been set for people traveling via the sea route. The guidelines and rules have been established keeping in mind safety measures required against covid-19 and the airlines are responsible for the implementation of guidelines before a passenger is given a boarding pass or plane ticket.
It is to be noted that, the Indian aviation industry has seen a significant recovery since June of this year after getting devastated by the impacts of Covid-19. Moreover, airlines have been able to operate on 100% capacity as they used to in pre-covid times since October 18. This gives India to capitalize on the growing demand for air travel not only in the domestic territory but also on the international network.
However, it’s not all rainbow for the airlines in the country as the rising prices of aviation fuel due to the increase in global crude oil demand is becoming a thing of concern for all the airlines. A surge of 94.4% has been seen on Aviation Turbine Fuel (ATF) in the month of November as compared to the same time last year.
