International Flights: Mangaluru Airport to Begin Flight Services to Gulf Countries From Today

International Flights Latest News Today: Issuing a statement, the Mangaluru International Airport (MIA) said that first Air India Express flight will leave from the airport on Wednesday, four months after the UAE imposed restrictions on travellers from India.

International Flights Latest News Today: Enhancing its international flights services, the Mangaluru International Airport (MIA) said it will begin the flight services to the Gulf countries from Wednesday. The services will resume as the UAE Civil Aviation Ministry clear the RT-PCR test facility arranged at the airport.

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Issuing a statement, the Mangaluru International Airport (MIA) said that first Air India Express flight will leave from the airport on Wednesday, four months after the UAE imposed restrictions on travellers from India.

The Mangaluru International Airport (MIA) also added that the rapid RT-PCR test facility was set up at the MIA with active support from the district health department authorities and the deputy commissioner’s office. Moreover, the MIA has also associated with Apollo Diagnostics to set up the test laboratory at the airport.

The MIA said that the Apollo has provided a team of expert pathologists, state-of-the-art equipment and stringent quality processes to conduct the rapid RT-PCR tests at airport.

Giving further details, the MIA said it has undertaken various safety measures and has implemented numerous guidelines, including the preventive measures laid down by the government to safeguard the well-being of passengers.

Travel guidelines to UAE:

1. As per the latest travel guidelines, the UAE government authorities said each passenger must get a negative RT-PCR report at the airport six hours prior to boarding the aircraft.
2. Not all Indian flyers can travel to UAE, only transit passengers and UAE residents are allowed to travel.
3. People with valid residency permits who have received full vaccination doses in the UAE and 14 days have passed since receiving the second dose can fly.

Flight ban extended: In the meantime, the DGCA has extended the ban on scheduled international passenger flights till August 31. However, it said that the international scheduled flights may be allowed on selected routes by the competent authority on a case-to-case basis.

It must be noted that the scheduled international passenger services have been suspended in India since March 23, 2020, due to the coronavirus pandemic. But special international flights have been operating under the Vande Bharat Mission since May 2020 and under bilateral “air bubble” arrangements with selected countries since July 2020.

Notably, India has formed air bubble pacts with around 24 countries including the US, the UK, the UAE, Kenya, Bhutan and France. Under an air bubble pact between two countries, special international flights can be operated by their airlines between their territories.