Flyers in a soup as India extends ban on international flights till July 31

The Directorate General of Civil Aviation (DGCA) said in a circular on Wednesday that an existing ban on scheduled international commercial flights stands extended till July 31. The ban, now in its 16^th straight month, was originally to end on June 30.

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— DGCA (@DGCAIndia) June 30, 2021

Similar to the current norms, dedicated cargo flights and flights under bilateral air bubble pacts with select countries will continue to operate, said the circular. “However, international scheduled flights may be allowed on selected routes by the competent authority on a case-to-case basis,” it added.

The Centre has suspended international passenger services since March 23, 2020, ever since the nation went into a lockdown to contain COVID. Since then, the DGCA has extended the ban multiple times.

Under the Vande Bharat Mission, special international flights were in operation from May 2020 to bring back Indian nationals stuck abroad amid lockdowns. In July, bilateral air bubble arrangements with select countries were struck to allow some more flights.

Need to fly

The aviation sector is still muted across the world due to the pandemic, particularly amid the emergence of new variants. Yet, several countries have lifted bans on international flights with the introduction of stringent rules. These include negative COVID test reports, complete vaccination, and the maintenance of strict social distancing norms at airports and in flights.

Also read: Mandatory RT-PCR on flights leaves passengers vexed

The Centre’s move to extend the ban was, therefore, met with dismay by flyers. Twitter was flooded with messages by people asking to know when they can expect to return home from their country of work, or vice-versa. Indians employed in the Gulf very particularly worried.

More trouble for airlines

To the Indian aviation sector, too, the ban extension presents a setback. Per estimates, Indian carriers saw just 20 lakh passengers fly domestically, vis-à-vis 122 lakh in May 2019. There is little to offset the weak domestic travel, since international flights are now allowed only under air bubbles.

According to the CAPA Centre for Aviation, Indian airlines saw losses of nearly $4 billion in fiscal 2020-21. The losses are only expected to rise in 2021-22. The sector has seen numerous job losses, with threats of more to come.

Publicly listed carriers IndiGo and SpiceJet are struggling to contain their losses, and looking at various fund-raise plans to keep themselves at float. GoFirst is set to launch an initial public offering (IPO), whose success would depend on how the aviation sector picks up in the months to come.

Meanwhile, national carrier Air India is struggling on all fronts. Amid mounting losses, the airline is trying to monetise assets by selling some real estate. Its privatisation plan is not taking off for want of sufficient interest.

The only bright spot on the horizon is the potential revival of Jet Airways. The airline, that had been grounded in 2019 due to its financial constraints, has been taken over by a consortium that plans to have it flying at the earliest. If Jet’s revival coincides with some respite from the pandemic, the Indian aviation sector may just see the turbulence through.