Explained: What are 'donkey flights' and how do they operate?

An alleged donkey flight, an Airbus A340 carrying 276 passengers, mostly Indians, landed in Mumbai early Tuesday morning (December 26), following a four-day detention in France over suspected human trafficking allegations.

The flight's connection to Nicaragua raised eyebrows, as the Central American nation has seen a surge in individuals seeking asylum in the United States. According to data from the US Customs and Border Patrol (CBP), there has been a significant increase in Indians attempting to enter the US illegally.

This has brought the issue of illegal immigrants from India back into the limelight within days of the release of Shah Rukh Khan’s third release of the year, Dunki, which delves into the subject. Talking about the movie at an event, Shah Rukh threw light on its theme, stating that it was about ‘donkey flights’, an illegal immigration technique that provides “back door entry” into the United States, United Kingdom and Canada. “Dunki is about an illegal trip. A lot of people take to get out of their country across borders all over the world. It’s called the donkey travel,” he explained.

Dunki’s release followed by this instance of a ‘donkey flight’ getting grounded in France has left people curious about this technique. The Federal takes a look at how Indians use this route to enter countries like the US and the UK to chase their dreams abroad.

What’s the donkey flight method?

Dunki is the Punjabi idiom that means to “hop from place to place”, according to the Migration Policy Institute (MPI). It is a colloquial term for “donkey flights” or the “donkey flights method”, which is a perilous illegal immigration technique that involves crossing a country’s borders through a backdoor route via multiple stops in other countries.

To put it simply, donkey flights are just a way to exploit immigration loopholes to enable entry of illegal immigrants to their desired destination abroad via multiple stops in other countries. For instance, an individual may get a tourist visa for a Schengen-zone country in order to reach the United Kingdom. Similarly, they can fly to South American countries to reach the United States.

Immigration agents or human traffickers have over the years evolved various methods to enable illegal immigrants to reach their chosen destination. Until last year, if one wished to immigrate to Western Europe, they would travel to Serbia without a visa and stay there for up to a month. During this period, the agents would make arrangements for a ‘donkey route’ sea journey from Serbia to Italy for the Indians. Serbia has Austria, Slovenia and Croatia on one side and Macedonia and Greece on the other side. Thus, from here, it is easy to enter European Union (EU) or Schengen countries.

Interestingly, these donkey flights are an open secret. A YouTube search for “USA Donkey” shows several how-to videos in Hindi or Punjabi about illegal border crossings. One vlog even shows a group passing through a Panama jungle to reach the border.

Who are the people using the ‘donkey flight’ method to immigrate to other countries?

The ‘donkey flight method’ is the most popular in Punjab from where scores of unemployed youth travel abroad in the hope of a better life. However, over the years, youth from other states like Haryana, Himachal Pradesh and even Gujarat are resorting to this technique to move abroad. With the increase in number of those willing to migrate, illegal and irregular migration has also grown significantly.

Though there is hardly any authentic data on such irregular migrants in the public domain, studies suggest the magnitude of the problem is “substantial” among migrants from Punjab. “Every year, more than 20,000 youth from Punjab attempt irregular migration,” according to a 2009 report by the United Nations Office on Drugs and Crime.

The trend in Punjab is also reflected in the state’s record of Police Clearance Certificates (PCCs) issued over the last 10 years. It shows a steady increase in the number of people migrating from Punjab. The PCC is issued to passport holders in case they have applied for residential status, employment or long-term visas, or immigration. More than 10 lakh PCCs have been issued across Punjab since 2012 and there has been a massive surge in the number in a decade. While the number of PCCs issued in 2012 was merely 24,334, the figure rose to a whopping 1,82,054 in 2022. It may touch the 2 lakh mark in 2023, as 1,21,953 PCCs were already issued in the first half of the year.

The number of illegal and legal immigrants from Punjab in the US, UK, and Canada has increased so much that Punjabi became the third-largest spoken language in the Parliament of Canada in 2015.

What’s the modus operandi of agents operating ‘donkey flight’ routes?

Travel agencies use different kinds of tactics for immigration in the UK, Canada and the US. Migrants are usually lured into striking a deal and then exploited by unscrupulous agents who facilitate illegal border crossing, using methods such as containers and ships. However, this method is fraught with danger as these migrants may get caught by the authorities, leading to their deportation. The agents also provide forged documents to illegal immigrants, including residency permits and driving licences.

In the initial phase of the donkey route, migrants are first sent to Latin American countries such as Ecuador, Bolivia, Guyana, Brazil and Venezuela which give visas to people on arrival before moving them to Columbia. Indians can also easily avail of tourist visas in destinations like Brazil and Venezuela.

After reaching Colombia, the illegal immigrants then enter Panama, though the route is quite risky as they have to cross the Darien Gap, a dangerous forest between the two countries.

The agents make them walk the whole length of the Darien Gap that connects Columbia with Panama. People often cross this cartel-infested stretch by marching for days on empty stomachs, fending off venomous snakes and life-threatening diseases. Once they cross Panama’s forest, they head towards Mexico to enter the US border.

Which countries are targeted the most using the ‘donkey method’?

While the donkey route can be used to enter any country, the US, Canada, and the UK are some of the most popular destinations undertaken by Indian immigrants.

According to the US Customs and Border Protection (USCBP), Indians are the fifth largest source of illegal migrants entering the US from the southwest border. 96,917 Indians were caught illegally crossing borders into the US between October 2022 and September 2023. Of this, 30,010 were caught at the Canada border and 41,770 at the Mexico border.

According to USCBP, between February 2019 and March 2023, as many as 1,49,000 Indians were detained for attempting to enter the US illegally. Of this, most of those detained were from Gujarat and Punjab.

A recent study by the Pew Research Center reveals that the third-largest illegal immigrant population in the US hails from India. Mexico and El Salvador hold the first and second place. Currently, 725,000 Indians are living illegally in the US. Certain states in the US, including California, Texas, Florida, New York and New Jersey are largely inhabited by these ‘donkeys’.

The Wall Street Journal also reported recently that from October 2022 to September 2023, nearly 42,000 Indians have crossed the US border illegally.

A similar trend has been witnessed in the UK too. Indians have become the second largest group of migrants crossing into the UK over the English Channel on risky small boats, according to the UK Home Office. According to the data, 675 Indian nationals entered the country by small boat between January and March, amid a “surge in attempts to evade work visa restrictions”.

The UK Home Office data also revealed that in January about 250 Indians had entered the UK, outnumbering the 233 who arrived via small boats in the first nine months of last year.